


Infection

by blobfishbells



Category: Produce 101 (TV), UP10TION, X1 (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Zombies, Angst, I'll be as less graphic as possible, I'm Sorry, M/M, Minor Character Death, Minor Violence, Zombie Apocalypse, will probably add tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2020-10-22
Packaged: 2020-11-02 03:35:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 28,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20608820
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blobfishbells/pseuds/blobfishbells
Summary: A deadly virus was unleashed and infected half of Korea's population. After having locked himself for 16 months, Jinhyuk finally decides to leave his underground bunker in search of other human beings. However, being away from society can take a toll on a person, and the first thing Jinhyuk does after finding a stranger called Kim Wooseok is kissing him senseless.





	1. First meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there! This is my first fanfiction EVER. I apologize in advance since there may be some mistakes as english is not my first language but I'll try my best to improve!  
Most of this story is based on the universe of 28 days later but it's not necessary to watch it since the story is completely different. I just used that movie as reference for most of the infected behaviour and origin.  
Hope you enjoy it!

A highly contagious, rage-inducing virus is unleashed after a group of animal liberation activists attempt to free chimpanzees infected with the virus, spreading quickly among the populace and resulting in chaos. Those carrying the virus are known among the survivors as “the infected”.

16 months have passed since the virus was unleashed…

___________________________________________________________________________

He was running out of water…

It was the first thing that came to his mind when he opened the mini fridge only to find out there were only two bottles left inside.

Jinhyuk made the calculations in his head while staring at the water bottle that he had just set on the table. If he rationed it wisely, it would last at least eight or nine days… but what about after that? Without water, he would only last three or four days more. He wasn’t ready to die yet, he still needed to go back to Jinwoo.

Jinwoo… Even thinking about his name hurt. He knew inside of him that there was a possibility that his little brother wasn’t even alive at this point… Almost a year and a half had already passed since the first wave of the infected had hit Seoul and in that year and a half he spent locked up in the bunker he hadn’t heard any news of the outside world. He had a radio down there but people had stopped broadcasting a long time ago. There wasn’t time for celebrity gossip and summer songs when you’re going through a zombie apocalypse, Jinhyuk guessed. However, he still kept the radio on, just in case. It didn’t hurt to have a little something to hold on to.

Still, he _KNEW_ that Jinwoo had to be alive, even if the most rational part in his mind told him that it wasn’t the case… there was one thing he hadn’t lost yet: hope.

Before dwelling on his current predicament of water and food shortage, he decided to follow his daily routine. He had already had a very humble breakfast and now it was time to exercise. He didn’t exactly know when he took up that habit because he never even dared to put a foot in the gym back in the day, however, when you are forced to live in a secluded space for a year and a half, you need to keep your body in motion.

After that, he washed his face and took a very quick… he wasn’t sure if that would count as a shower. He just watered his hair, armpits and private parts. He hadn’t had a decent shower for 3 months at least, when he had realized that tap water wouldn’t probably last forever. He couldn’t even take advantage of rain water since any contact with the outside world was a risk.

And yet, here he was… Jinhyuk was trying to find other alternatives but he knew that there was no other option left. He would have to go out. Suddenly, death by dehydration didn’t sound so bad… But he had a promise to fulfil. If Jinwoo was alive somewhere, it was the perfect opportunity to find him. For once in his life, he had to take the risk. He owed his brother that.

Jinhyuk still remembered the day they parted ways very clearly. The government had scheduled trains that would lead them to a safe area. Now, he doubted how “safe” those areas were but at that time, desperation took the best of everyone. After the death of his parents, he had to be the responsible adult and, at that time, taking one of those trains seemed the most responsible thing to do. But, the problem was that the entire town had the same idea. The station was in pure chaos, people running here and there trying to find a way inside any of the trains, security guards using force against those who were going too far… At one point, someone shouted that the last train was about to leave and there was some space left in the last wagon, however, only children up to 12 years old were allowed to take it. Jinwoo was 13 at the time but his innocent face made him look younger so Jinhyuk was able to squeeze him in with no protest from the guards.

“You’re not coming…” had said Jinwoo. It was supposed to come out as a question but they both knew the answer to that. The train Jinwoo was currently on was the last from the day and there were already some infected lurking the zone, it would take them less than a few hours to arrive.

“Hey, don’t be sad” answered Jinhyuk with his characteristic smile. “No matter how long it’ll take. We will see each other again.

“You promise?” asked Jinwoo, his eyes full of hope.

“I swear” Jinhyuk extended his pinky and Jinwoo intertwined it with his, sealing the promise. “If things get dangerous I’ll even use the bunker that dad built” said the older while laughing. His dad had been very paranoid after having served in the army. He always said that he wanted to be ready in case of an attack… Little did he know that the attack would come in the form of a deadly virus.

A few seconds after that exchange of words, screams were heard from afar… The infected had arrived to the station earlier than planned. “Be careful! I’ll go back to you, I promise” yelled Jinhyuk while running towards the safest exit. Jinwoo, who had looked full of hope a few seconds before, now looked absolutely terrified. Before he could answer anything, the doors closed and the engine of the train started. Jinhyuk swore that he would keep that promise.

That day at the station, had taken a toll on him… He had been very lucky to stay alive, but on the other hand, he saw things he rather forget and developed a crippling fear after that. His resolve of being brave because of his little brother were long forgotten after the massacre he had witnessed. After closing the door of the bunker, he wasn’t so sure if he could keep that promise.

But almost 16 months had already passed. He needed to stop being a coward, he owned his brother that. Maybe Jinwoo had been looking for him while he was too busy secluding himself like a coward. Suddenly, his resolve came back on a whim… He had to go out.

But first, he needed to come up with a plan. His main priority was to find water and some food, if he could and then, he would try to reach Sokcho, the place where Jinwoo’s train was supposed to arrive two years ago. According to his calculations, the trip would take three days at least… In those three days he would have to hide from the infected with no certainty of what or who he could find in Sokcho. For all he knew… he could be the last man alive on earth.

The boy shook his head, ruling that possibility out. He decided to get ready once and for all. He took a backpack and fill it with only the more vital necessities. It would be better if he didn’t carry much burden, otherwise it would be very difficult to run from those carrying the virus or any other threat. He packed his two bottles of water, some canned food, a compass, a torch and a first aid kit.

Jinhyuk took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nerves and took one last look to the place that had been his home for almost two years. It was hardly a home now… it made him feel really lonely now that he thought about it. Would he ever be able to become a normal member of society again? Even thinking about interacting with a human made him nervous.

Without even noticing, his hand was already pushing the entrance open. He had to squint his eyes when he saw the first rays of sunlight coming through. He didn’t even know what time it was, let alone the month, the date… those things had become meaningless to him.

When he came out, there was no one on sight; only a heavy silence and desolation in the street. IT really did felt like the apocalypse. He took the compass, set his course and started walking slowly, completely wary of all his surroundings and trying to make the minimum noise possible in order not to attract any unwanted attention.

This isn’t how he had imagined his great escape. It somehow felt uneventful… not that he wasn’t relieved for that but he didn’t imagine it would be _THIS_ easy. But… he was afraid of speaking too soon.

He had been walking for at least an hour, when a strange noise caught his attention. The sound of an engine running. “Do zombies know how to drive now?” He thought, picking up the pace just in case; he didn’t dare looking for the source of the noise, it was better to leave that place as soon as possible. However, just two blocks from where he was, he heard another noise… This time, much more alarming than the previous one… He remembered where he last heard that same noise: at the train station, it was the sound of one of the infected eating vigorously, the deafening slurping and chewing noises that froze him on his spot. He couldn’t even think of running away, not when the eyes of the infected “person” met his own. “I’m going to die here” thought Jinhyuk, tears pooling in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Jinwoo.” As soon as the creature dashed towards him, he closed his eyes, awaiting his fate. However, what he heard next wasn’t the sound of his heart stopping… it was the sound of a gun. His eyes flashed open only to find that the creature was lying on the floor a few feet away from him with a hole in his head.

Regaining his common sense, he turned around and opened his eyes in surprise when they came in contact with the most perfect being he had seen in his entire life. Doe eyes, cute nose, fluffy hair, short height and small lips. Jinhyuk had never been religious but he was sure an angel had come to save him… or maybe he was already dead and this is how they welcomed him in heaven.

The beautiful boy approached him, Jinhyuk could see that his eyes were full of questions. “How long have you been in this area? Are you hurt? I didn’t expect we would find anyone here...” Ugh, even his voice was angelic, Jinhyuk was out of words. He couldn’t hold back anymore. In his defence, he hadn’t seen, heard or touch another human being for almost two years. Nobody could blame him for what he did next.

He took the smaller man in his arms. A sound of satisfaction came out of his mouth when he felt the warm of another human being and also how their bodies fitted so well together. The “angel” opened his eyes and was about to protest but was unable to do so when Jinhyuk pressed his lips against the others’, silencing him before he could say anything else.

It had been so long sice Jinhyuk had kissed someone for the last time, he didn't even know if he was doing it right. But that's the thing, he wasn't even thinking, it was his primal instinct kicking in and ordering what to do. The other boy was frozen on the spot, like a statue. This frustrated the taller a little, so he held the other even closer and deepened the kiss. His tongue traced the angel's lower lip slowly, asking for something, anything: closeness, togetherness, connection, help... He missed having another person close, someone to talk to, someone to hold... just someone...

He had always been clingy and impulsive, or at least that what his brother used to tell him. Now, holding on to a strange man for dear life, he could be sure of that. He moved his lips against the other one's hungrily, impulsively but this time, the boy responded and wrapped his arms around Jinhyuk's neck... Maybe he had also been looking for someone to rely on.

A rather loud cough broke the moment and both boys, realizing what they had been doing, jumped away from each other, both with reddened cheeks. 

The other man cleared his throat. Jinhyuk hadn't seen him before... He looked his way and saw a truck behind him. "_So that's where the engine sound was coming from_" thought Jinhyuk. If he hadn't ran away from it, he could have met the others before but who could blame him? Nobody could be sure in a zombie apocalypse.

"I mean... I can totally give you some time to finish... whatever you were doing" said the other man. He was taller than his angel and a little more built. His face reminded him of a fox. "but I'm afraid that you'd be dead when I come back." He looked at the brunette with a scolding expression. "Wooseok just gave away our location with that gunshot. If there's any other infected near... he's probably looking for us."

So his name was Wooseok...

"The infected was about to kill him... I thought we came here looking for survivors." Said Wooseok, finally having regained himself from whatever had happened before. "As I was saying... Are you hurt in any way? How long have you been here?"

"Wow, wow, wow, hold on" said the fox-like guy. "Don't torment the poor guy. He was about to day three minutes ago. Anyways... My name is Cho Seungyoun and the guy you just kissed is Wooseok." Seungyoun extended a hand before him. However, Jinhyuk was to occupied panicking and doing whatever not to meet Wooseok's eyes.

"N-nice to meet you... I'm... Jinhyuk."

"Jinhyuk?" said Wooseok, surprise in his voice and a curious glint in his eyes. 

"Yeah... That's my name." Jinhyuk cursed himself internally. He was dying of embarassement after the long kiss both of them had shared.

Before Wooseok could reply anything, Seungyoun intervened. "What if we continue this lovely chat in the car? I am not planning on being eaten by the infected today."

Jinhyuk regained his composure and started asking the important questions. "Excuse me but... where are you going exactly?"

"Oh! We are going back to our community... Do you wanna come? It's in Sokcho." said Seungyoun with an inviting smile.

Jinhyuk eyes widened in disbelief... A tiny ray of hope blooming in his heart.


	2. Target on

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Rule number 1: be alert at all times… you never know when an infected can appear.” Seungyoun said this proudly, as if it wasn’t obvious enough.  
Wooseok cleared his throat. “Well, thank you for that amazing tip, Seungyoun. I’m sure Jinhyuk will be able to follow it thoroughly if you set an example and look at the front while driving.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the delay!  
My computer suddenly stopped working so I had to get it repaired and it took a while.  
Here's chapter 2! I promise the romance is coming soon but first some things need to be settled  
I hope you bare with me for a little while! I'll try to update as soon as I can.  
Also... I think I wil have to change the tags. This will turn out a little bit more dramatic than I originally planned

After the invitation was extended to him, Jinhyuk didn’t hesitate for a second and accepted, nodding vigorously as if his life depended on it… well, it kinda did.

Wooseok insisted on driving but Seungyoun would have none of it. He complained that the smaller one was too slow and cautious, which wouldn’t be very helpful if they had to drive away from the infected. Wooseok retaliated by saying that the other’s driving was reckless but Seungyoun simply smiled and said “exactly”. After that, it was clear that Wooseok wouldn’t win so he just took the passenger seat while rolling his eyes.

Meanwhile, Jinhyuk had to make room for himself in the backseat of the truck, which was filled with guns, canned food, some clothes and plastic bags containing God knows what. It wasn’t his intention to ruin or spoil anything so he tried to touch as few things as possible. There weren’t that many guns but he couldn’t help feeling baffled. He had never touched, let alone used, a gun in his entire life so the ability that Wooseok had shown in manoeuvring one surprised him to no end. The smaller one was definitely skilled since it only took him one perfectly aimed shot to put down that infected.

“T-thank you… for saving my life back there” said Jinhyuk suddenly. Damn, why was he stuttering again? Maybe it had a lot to do with the fact that he hadn’t spoken to another person for so long, but of course, it didn’t help that Wooseok was so good looking… He also wanted to apologize for the sudden kiss but he wondered if it would be better to ignore the issue. Even so… Jinhyuk didn’t want them to think that he was the type to run around kissing people randomly. “And… sorry for kissing you out of nowhere. I’m not the type of guy who does that out of the blue. The truth is I haven’t seen a person for so long that I guess I became excited.”

The taller hid his face in shame while apologizing. He didn’t know how to face the smaller one. Wooseok gave a little smile and was about to answer, however, Seungyoun beat him to it.

“Then I wonder why you didn’t kiss me…” Said the fox-like guy, puckering his lips towards Jinhyuk, as if asking for a kiss himself. Before Jinhyuk could say anything, Wooseok intervened and hit Seungyoun in the arm.

“Eyes on the road.” He simply said and added “I’m going to tell Hangyul” after a pause.

“You’re no fun.” Answered Seungyoun but nevertheless, he returned his eyes to the front.

Wooseok looked towards the raven haired boy. “Hey, don’t worry about it…” Jinhyuk could notice how a little bit of pink tinted his cheeks but he wouldn’t mention it. “I didn’t even push you away for that matter…” this was said in a smaller, almost shy tone.

Guess Wooseok wasn’t the only one with rosy cheeks now.

“Sorry to burst your bubble but I really don’t want to be a third wheel here so…” before any of the two flustered males could say anything in retaliation, Seungyoun looked towards Jinhyuk through the rear-view mirror. “Jinhyuk was it? Okay, Jinhyuk… we will have to make a few stops before Sokcho and I can’t promise that it’s going to be safe all the time. So the important question here is… do you know how to use a gun?”

“Not really… I have never used one.” Jinhyuk never really thought it would be a much necessary ability in the future. He was more of a science and maths kind of guy.

“You’re screwed.” said the man jokingly while throwing his head back laughing.

“Seungyoun!” Wooseok didn’t find it very funny. To be fair… Jinhyuk didn’t also.

“I was just joking, jeez. Luckily, you have your guardian angel Wooseok to protect you! He’s great with guns, the best in the refuge actually” The lanky man looked at Wooseok with worry in his eyes… It was hard to believe that someone so fragile looking like the smaller man was in charge of such dangerous activity. He wondered whether Wooseok was good with guns even before the virus broke out.

“What makes me curious is, if you don’t mind me asking… how have you managed to stay alive this far without using a gun?” Jinhyuk might have been crazy but he believed seeing suspicion in the other’s eyes. He couldn’t blame him, really. It was hard to trust anyone in the situation they were.

“You’re probably not going to believe me but…” he took a deep breath, hoping not to sound too crazy. “I have been hiding in an underground bunker for almost 16 months.”

He was expecting a surprised reaction but in turn, he was met with silence.

“So those things really DO exist. I have to tell Dongpyo, he will freak out.” Seungyoun laughed to himself… Presumably imagining the other person’s reaction. Jinhyuk couldn’t help but wonder how many people had survived the “apocalypse” and were now together in Sokcho and also, if his little brother was among those people. He was itching to

“How did you stay alive for so long? Didn’t you feel uneasy not knowing anything about the outside world?” asked Wooseok, a little bit more concerned than his partner but also with a hint of scepticism.

“There was a radio down there so I was more or less informed of what was going on outside… at least on the first stages of the infection.” He hadn’t learned a lot, only the cause of the infection. “As regards to food… I had enough supplies to keep me alive until now…” said Jinhyuk, shrugging. “I actually went out because I was running critically low on them.” He suddenly remembered his backpack and the contents in it. “I actually have some canned food in here. Would you like some?”

“YE-“ Seungyoun was practically beaming after the mentioning of food.

“No, thanks. It’s better if we save it and share it with the others at the refuge.”

Soungyoun made a pout but didn’t say anything. He knew that Wooseok was right. Right now, they had to care for other people apart from themselves. Jinhyuk understood that from now on he would have to do the same if he was to become a part of this new community.

Jinhyuk was aching to ask if his brother Jinwoo was among the survivors but a feeling inside kept him from doing so. What if the answer was no? If his brother wasn’t in Sokcho, he would have to start his search all over again without a clear lead. Or worse… what if his deepest fear was real and Jinwoo had died? Jinhyuk wasn’t sure he could bear that. He decided to keep a little hope inside of him alive and wish for the best. Still, he’d rather see by himself if the little guy was alive and well in Sokcho; he was still too scared to ask his new acquaintances.

"Listen, my friend.” Said the fox looking guy. “You will have to get used to this new kind of life. Luckily, I am a master in survival so I will give you some tips.” He boasted.

Jinhyuk was a little confused but decided to hear what the other one had to say. However, in the corner of his eye he could see Wooseok rolling his eyes.

“Rule number 1: be alert at all times… you never know when an infected can appear.” Seungyoun said this proudly, as if it wasn’t obvious enough.

Wooseok cleared his throat. “Well, thank you for that amazing tip, Seungyoun. I’m sure Jinhyuk will be able to follow it thoroughly if you set an example and look at the front while driving.”

“Hey! I didn’t get to mention rule number 2 or 3!”

“Rule number 2: shoot to the head. That’s the vital one” answered Wooseok nonchalantly.

Jinhyuk’s answer got stuck in his throat so he simply gulped and nodded.

They had driven for at least one hour and a half when they go to their first stop: Cheongju. The driver had explained that they were going to head south first to look for more food supplies and Wooseok had mentioned they also were in great need of medical supplies. He had looked very distressed as he was saying that. Maybe someone at the refuge was critically ill…

They hadn’t encountered any infected on their way there which Jinhyuk had found odd. When he commented it, the others explained that Seoul had been the centre of the outbreak so, at first, the majority of the infected were there but after the years, they had also ran out of “food supplies” so they migrated to other areas.

Before anyone could open the door of the truck, Wooseok took two guns from the backseat and gave one to Jinhyuk. “Let’s hope you won’t need it, but just in case.” He took the gun with shaky hands while Wooseok gave him a quick explanation on how to use it in case of danger.

They were right in front of what should have been a hospital. Now, it was a shattered building with broken windows that gave out nothing but an eerie feeling. “I have a bad hunch about this, Wooseok” said Seungyoung while looking closely towards the main entrance. “There’s flesh on the ground.”

Wooseok didn’t seem surprised unlike Jinhyuk who hadn’t noticed the rotten flesh on the ground until Seungyoun mentioned it. “If they are on the stage of decay, they shouldn’t be too dangerous.”

“I wouldn’t bet on that, buddy. That also means they’re twice as hungry.” Wooseok refused to look at the other and stubbornly prepared the gun in his hand. After a pause, Seungyoun sighed. “Help me out here, Jinhyuk.”

He pointed at himself as if saying _‘Me? Why me?’_ Seungyoun just glared at him and pointed at Wooseok, urging him to convince the smaller male. “Maybe we can look for another way? Another hospital maybe?”

“He’s right Wooseok, we can go further south and-“

Suddenly, Wooseok transformed, leaving no trace of the quiet and composed boy who had acted as the voice of reason throughout the trip. “And what? It will take us a lot more of time to go back to the refuge… what if we are too late? We need the medicine, and we need it now!” He moved his head towards Jinhyuk and stared directly at him, testing him. “I won’t let Jinwoo die.”

Something inside Jinhyuk snapped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My twitter account and cc is @wblobfishbells. You can go there if you have any questions!


	3. Trapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He put his hand on Jinhyuk’s, giving it a gently squeeze. “We’ll be okay, I promise. I swear I’ll take you back to your brother.” He couldn’t even imagen the joy that the little one would feel when Wooseok took his big brother home.   
Wooseok felt like he knew a lot about Jinhyuk already but he had wanted to see him in the flesh and now he wanted to see him doing all the things that made Jinwoo happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY.   
I don't know if anyone is still reading this ;;  
I haven't updated in a while and the reason is that I'm on my last year of college and I had to sit for exams. I have my last exam on the 17th so I'm probably going to be MIA until then ): but hopefully i will return as a graduate student!   
Hope you enjoy this chapter!

He could see the eyes of the taller become impossibly wide. ‘I was right. It’s him’ Wooseok thought. If he needed any other confirmation, the outburst of the man in front of him was enough.

“Jinwoo? As in Lee Jinwoo? He’s alive? Is he sick? Is the medicine for him?” Jinhyuk spitted all these questions without stop, almost screaming. His breathing was erratic and his face turned white. It was clear that he hadn’t expected this kind of revelation so soon. He looked as if he was going to faint in any minute.

Before that could happen, Wooseok intervened. He knew it was an unfair move but he hoped that the revelation would put Jinhyuk on his side and let him enter the hospital. He wass not gonna lie, at first he hadn’t been entirely sure if this Jinhyuk was the Lee Jinhyuk he had so desperately tried to find but it had been worth a try and it had paid off.

“Yes. He’s alive, Jinhyuk… But he needs the medicine, morphine. Please, you have to let me go. We need to hurry.” Wooseok tried to look as calm as possible. He looked straight at Jinhyuk’s eyes, trying to let him know that he also cared deeply for his little brother.

“No.” Wooseok couldn’t hide his surprise. Had his plan backfired? No, he couldn’t give up. How could Jinhyuk not care about his own brother? He was about to give the taller a piece of his mind but Jinhyuk spoke again, determination in his eyes. “I’ll go with you.”

Seungyoun intervened at that exact moment. “WOW, wait a minute… I don’t know what you have to do with little Jinwoo but this is suicidal, man! You don’t even know how to use a gun.”

“Wooseok here just told me.”

“That’s not the point! You were HIDDEN in a bunker for a long t ime. You don’t know what you’re going against...” the man tried to warn him.

“Let him come.” Interrupted Wooseok without tearing his eyes away from the determined man. He knew Jinhyuk didn’t have experience but, at that moment, something inside of him wanted to trust him. Wooseok had seen how the power of love could make someone stronger even in the worst times, and, judging by Jinwoo’s continuous ranting about his brother, Jinhyuk loved him very much.

“Too bad you’re not in charge, doll.” Answered Seungyoun with a serious look on his face. He had just activated the “co leader mode” as people liked to call it back at the refuge. Seungyoun had gone through a lot of things and he had seen the death of a lot of people that he cared about, so Wooseok understood his worries. However, exactly because of that, Seungyoun would have to understand their position. Neither of them was ready to lose little Jinwoo.

“And then what? We don’t know how much time Jinwoo has left… It’s been 3 days, Seungyoun. I’m terrified of whatever the hell could have happened while we were away. Please… let me go, please.”

“I’m not staying here while my brother is who knows where going through who knows what. If what he needs is medicine, then I’m taking it, even if my life is on the line. I have hid for a long time now… The least I can do for Jinwoo after leaving him alone is risking my life trying to save him.”

So Jinhyuk was indeed Jinwoo’s brother. At that point, he had already been absolutely convinced but hearing the other one say it only made it more real. He didn’t know how to feel about it… Happy? Jealous? Worried? He would have to find that out later, right know there were more important matters to take care of.

Seungyoun sighed, knowing that it was a lost cause. He would never be able to convince them after those speeches. “I’ll clear the entrance so you can go in and get out easily. Be as quick as possible, you hear? Take the walkie talkie. If you have any trouble in there, you contact me. Are we clear?”

Both Jinhyuk and Wooseok nodded and grabbed their guns, ready to enter at any moment.

Seungyoun opened the window of the truck and shot his rifle right on the entrance. Right after that, a series of screeches could be heard, some from the distance and some nearer than expected. In no more than a few seconds, at least six decomposed bodies started approaching them, only driven by their hunger. Seungyoun didn’t lose any time and started to shoot, aiming for the brain of the creatures.

Wooseok was nervous as hell when Seungyoun looked at him for a second, signalling that it was time for them to enter. “I’ll try to keep them busy while you’re inside, but I can’t promise it will be enough. We don’t know how many more there are inside.” Wooseok nodded and turned to look at Jinhyuk, who seemed even more nervous than him. Of course, he had never done that… Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to let the taller boy come with him. However, if Jinhyuk was as stubborn as Jinwoo described, he wouldn’t go back on the idea of accompanying Wooseok.

Just in case, Wooseok thought of reassuring the other. He put his hand on Jinhyuk’s, giving it a gently squeeze. “We’ll be okay, I promise. I swear I’ll take you back to your brother.” He couldn’t even imagen the joy that the little one would feel when Wooseok took his big brother home. Jinwoo talked non-stop about him, about how his big brother would buy him anything he asked for, about how his big brother took responsibility for all the messes he used to cause, about the way his brother smile could compete with the sun (he still had to see if this was true), about how he felt that everything was going to be okay when his brother ruffled his hair and gave him one of those big smiles. Wooseok felt like he knew a lot about Jinhyuk already but he had wanted to see him in the flesh and now he wanted to see him doing all the things that made Jinwoo happy.

The raven haired boy put his other hand on top of Wooseok and gave him a little smile. That’s definitely not the one that outshines the sun, thought Wooseok. Guess he would have to wait a little more.

“When we come back, I have a lot of questions for you…” Wooseok laughed and nodded. Jinhyuk had said “when” and not “if” and that was enough to give him a little hope.

“Let’s go.” He pushed the door of the car open and signalled Jinhyuk to do the same. They didn’t know exactly where to go so they would have just to look in each room. Since most of the infected from a while ago had come from the right aisle, they decided to go through the opposite. At first they were careful to not make any noise but they realized that it would take forever to find something at the pace they were going so they decided to be a little reckless.

They were going through the last room at the end of the aisle, looking inside every shelf and drawer in hope of finding something. This room was rather big and it looked like some kind of lab, filled with different tools and tubes containing unfamiliar substances that Jinhyuk had warned against touching, just in case.

Wooseok was surprised by how Jinhyuk was handling the situation. He knew that the other one was probably scared but his face didn’t show it. In his eyes, he just saw determination. Jinhyuk caught Wooseok staring before the other could turn his face away. He didn’t know why he got flustered, especially in this kind of situation. Maybe he was just overwhelmed by the fact that the older was actually real and alive. Jinhyuk stared right back and took his hand, the same way he had took the other’s one back in the car. It was a silent exchange… as if both were saying “We’ll get through this.”

Before anyone could say or do anything, a painful screech was heard from outside the room, at the end of the aisle.

They had closed the door so the infected wouldn’t be able to get in but the problem was how they were going to get out of that room. The initial screech was followed by a few more, at least four more according to Wooseok and they sounded really close… so close that they wouldn’t have time to escape. The only sensible thing to do was to stay inside until they found a distraction or another way out. The door was made of metal so it wouldn’t bulge easily. At least they had time... but how much?

Jinhyuk started looking everywhere in the room, he opened every drawer and cupboard until he released a big sigh, followed by a “_you gotta be kidding me…_”

He beckoned Wooseok in order to show him his discovery.

Right there, in one of the cupboards was the morphin that they needed.

Wooseok cursed their luck. Of course they would find it in the only room where they had encountered trouble.

The infected were banging loudly on the door, throwing their bodies towards it in an attempt to get in, but it was futile... But they didn’t know that, they couldn’t learn, they couldn’t think, they didn’t have common sense, they only though about feeding themselves.

“Seungyoun, do you copy?” Wooseok tried to contact his partner through the walkie talkie. “We’re locked. There are some infected waiting outside and we can’t go out. Can you make some kind of distraction?”

The answer came much later than he had expected. Normally in this kind of situations, Seungyoun didn’t take much in responding. He couldn’t help but think that something had happened to the older. Wooseok hoped it wasn’t the case, otherwise he wouldn’t be able to be in peace with himself when it was him who had insisted on this crazy ordeal.

Luckily, Seungyoun answered two or three minutes later but for Wooseok and Jinhyuk, it felt like an eternity.

“Kind of busy…” Static. “Had to drive away…” Static. “Infected following me…” Static. “At least six of them.” Static. “I’ll try…” Static. “Be there…” Static. “Don’t know…”

What had happened to Seungyoun? Was he in danger? Could he make it alone? How long would they have to stay there? What would happen to Jinwoo if they failed?

He suddenly felt it… The dizziness, the heavy sweating, the nausea. His breathing started becoming erratic and it was hard to breathe. The ringing in his head became louder and louder, so loud that he tried to cover his ears but in vain, it was all inside of his head.

Not again. Not now. Not in front of Jinhyuk.

Not a panic attack.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since I have been busy studying, I haven't been very active :( but you can always follow me on twitter if you want to know my progress ;; or if you have any question! @wblobfishbells


	4. Game of Survival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A loud bang echoed through the entire room. It seemed like the infected outside were trying to break the door. They had less and less time… And it didn’t seem like Seungyoun was coming to help any time soon, since he was already in trouble.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I-is anyone out there? Are people still interested in this?  
Hi! I'm back... and I'm not dropping this! A lot has been going on... I took my last exam, I failed, I had to retake it and finally graduated. I'm sorry I wasn't able to update Infection sooner. I wanted to try and make this chapter longer but I love cliffhangers too much. I promise to not keep you wait long this time
> 
> 2 more things:  
1) I hope you are taking care of yourselves during this time. Please be extra careful and wash your hands constantly. I pray all of you can be safe  
2) Regarding Wooseok's panic attack: I have a friend who suffers from panic attacks, so all the things Jinhyuk does are valid and I hope you use this opportunity to learn what to do in these cases if you don't already know. Of course, I hope you won't have to go through these situations but it's always better to be prepared
> 
> I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Jinhyuk could see the panic in Wooseok eyes as the younger slid to the floor, hands on his ears and body shaking uncontrollably. He was no stranger to the scene which was unfolding in front of him. He recognized the sings as soon as he took a good look at Wooseok; he could see his mother reflected in the doe eyes of the boy.

After having worked at his father’s laboratory for many years, Mrs Lee had decided to quit for unknown reasons. Jinwoo and Jinhyuk had been too young to prone at the time, however, when her oldest son aged up, he couldn’t help but ask about it –especially when he started to help at the lab himself- but his mother would always enter an altered state which made it impossible for her to explain anything. Eventually, Jinhyuk had dropped it, not wanting to cause his mother more suffering.

It was usual for her to have nightmares so it was common for her panic attacks to strike at night. The situation forced both children to learn how to cope with these attacks. In general, it was Jinwoo who stayed at home the most so he was the “expert” in the field, he used to do a lot of research at the time.

But his little brother wasn’t here now, so it was up to him to help Wooseok. He knew what he had to do, or at least he remembered most of it. He approached the other male slowly, trying not to startle him while reassuring words came out of his mouth.

“It’s okay, Wooseok. I’m here with you…” He crouched slowly in front of the younger, trying to get his attention. The other was now gasping for air with tears pouring down his face. He knew that Wooseok would be embarrassed after this, but it was Jinhyuk’s duty to create a safe space for him and let the other know he wouldn’t be judged. 

“I’m not leaving you… Look at me, Wooseokie.” Jinhyuk tried to speak with the softest tone he could. He was painfully aware of the screeches that could be heard from behind the door, but everything would get worse if he panicked as well. He had to stay calm, for the sake of both of them.

With a little difficulty, Wooseok looked at Jinhyuk. Tears were still adorning his face and the older couldn’t stand it. The younger had shown himself as someone strong and reliable and seeing him so vulnerable broke Jinhyuk’s heart. This was a fucked up situation. They were in a fucked up post-apocalyptic world and it was bound to take a toll on even the strongest ones.

“That’s it, Wooseok, focus on me… Look only at me and try to breathe, okay?” Wooseok’s eyes stayed on his face, tears gradually stopping but his breathing wasn’t getting any better.

“Breathe with me, Wooseokie. You can get through this.” Jinhyuk started breathing as slowly as he could so that the other boy could follow. 

“Let’s take a deep breath while counting to four and then I’ll count again so we let it out.” He remembered Jinwoo saying the same line to his mother and even in Wooseok’s eyes he detected recognition. Could it be that Jinwoo had already helped the doe-eyed boy in a similar situation?

He decided to leave the questions for later, right now there were too many emergencies at the same time and he needed to stay focused. Jinhyuk started counting, guiding Wooseok with his own breathing at the same time, it took some minutes but Wooseok’s breathing gradually normalized and he seemed a little calmer. In spite of this, Jinhyuk decided to stay put for a little while. He was actually dying to find a way out as soon as possible but he needed to reassure the smaller of his presence.

He decided to study Wooseok’s face in the meantime. The tears had dried almost completely but his eyes were still a little puffy, however, there still was that little gleam in them. Jinhyuk’s eyes travelled down, studying his nose, his cheekbones and settling on the other’s lips. They were a little chapped but were slowly regaining their colour… and they looked as inviting as the very first time they kissed. What if…? 

NO, NO, NO. This was definitely NOT the right time to think about that. 

He moved his eyes quickly upwards and found Wooseok’s eyes again, now decorated by rosy cheekbones. At first, Jinhyuk was relieved since the smaller had apparently recovered some colour, however, two seconds later he realized that Wooseok was actually blushing because he had been staring at Jinhyuk ALL THE TIME. Talking about embarrassing… Now he was surely blushing as well.

The taller cleared his throat and stood up pretending he hadn’t just thought about kissing the smaller… again. He held a hand towards Wooseok and the other took it while giving him a small smile. Once Wooseok was up, Jinhyuk asked him about his condition.

“How are you feeling? Better?”

“Yes… Thank you… and sorry…” said Wooseok while looking at the floor. Jinhyuk put his hands on Wooseok’s shoulders, prompting him to look upwards.

“Hey… There’s nothing to be sorry for. You don’t have to feel ashamed.” He gave the other a reassuring smile while massaging his shoulder in an attempt to release the tension that the other was surely feeling.

“Jinwoo was right… You really are reliable, Jinhyuk.” The taller wanted to ask so many questions… How had his brother managed without him? Had he cried a lot? At least Jinhyuk knew that his brother hadn’t been alone all this time. There were people willing to protect him, people like Wooseok, who was willing to put his life in danger in order to save the little one.

Before Jinhyuk could say anything, a loud bang echoed through the entire room. It seemed like the infected outside were trying to break the door. They had less and less time… And it didn’t seem like Seungyoun was coming to help any time soon since he was already in trouble.

The good thing was that at least they had de morphine now. The problem was how to get it out.

Both boys started looking everywhere for an exit but it was futile. The door seemed to be the only way out and there was no way they would come out alive… Not when there seemed to be more than six or seven infected outside.

Sure, they had guns but honestly, only Wooseok really knew how to use one… The smaller male would have to fight the infected while also keeping an eye on him…

Only a big sigh came out of his mouth. Why was he so useless? Wooseok had said that he was reliable but in reality, he was nothing but a burden in this situation. 

The smaller male looked at Jinhyuk with worry in his eyes. He was not really good at comforting people but just as he had needed some encouragement, the taller needed him now.

“Hey, don’t worry…” He put his little hand on the other’s shoulder and looked into his eyes. “I don’t know how but I promise we’ll get out and I’ll get you to Jinwoo no matter what.” Assured Wooseok with a little smile. He had to be strong, for both of them. It would be no use if even one of them fell into despair.

Jinhyuk looked defeated and couldn’t meet the shorter’s eyes. “I’m sorry for being a burden.” 

“Lee Jinhyuk, you are NOT a burden.” Said Wooseok, now putting both of his hands on the other’s shoulders.

“You came with me here even though you knew that it would be dangerous… You were the one who helped me when I had a breakdown… If I had been here alone, I don’t know what would have happened to me.” Jinhyuk looked at him with opened eyes, every word sinking deep into his heart. “You are stronger than you think…”

“I think you give me too much credit.” Answered Jinhyuk with a little smile. He had cheered up a little because of the words of his companion. “Thanks, Wooseok. I really mean it.” He put his hand over Wooseok’s as a signal that he was okay and the other could let go now but Wooseok stayed on that position, afraid of letting go.

Before he was able to say anything else, the walkie talkie came to life and Seungyoun’s voice could be heard coming from it. 

“Hey! Hope I’m not interrupting another make-out session or something but I took care of my little ‘problem’. I’ll be there in like… 15 minutes perhaps? Wait… are you even alive?”

Wooseok let out a little laugh and responded. “No, we are dead and what you hear is the sound of our corpses making out.”

“Eugh, too much information.”

“I’m kidding, idiot. We’re still kind of locked up… My offer of making a distraction while we escape is still standing though”

“Well… I only have like… three or four bullets left. How many zombies are we talking about?”

Wooseok sighed. Seungyoun must have been in big trouble. He felt a little bad for leaving him alone outside but on the other hand, if he had come along, he would have been locked up like them.

It was too risky, even for Seungyoun. They would have to help him from the back once the infected had cleared up the door. They couldn’t wait a second.

“There are at least six of them outside. Listen… When you create the distraction on the front door, we’ll help you from the back.” He looked at the taller of the two, signalling him to grab his gun and be prepared.

Seungyoun took a moment to answer. He was probably in big thought, wondering how he could help his friends with his few bullets. Wooseok knew that there was no answer, he would have to wait and hope for the best… and Seungyoun seemed to realize it too when he answered:

“Roger.”

________

While they waited, Wooseok reminded Jinhyuk of how to use the gun and all the possible outcomes.

“Worst case scenario is they not leaving even after hearing the distraction.”

“If they do leave, we make sure they are at a considerable distance –not too close but not too far either- and then we shoot them from the back. Again, useful tip: shoot to the head.”

Jinhyuk only nodded, his trembling hand holding his gun. He gulped and took a deep breath after, trying to calm himself. He would be of no help to anybody by being a scaredy-cat. This was all for his brother, he had to get out alive no matter what.

The walkie talkie came to life once more. “I’m outside. Get ready.”

Two minutes later, a small explosion could be heard from outside. This seemed to call the attention of the infected outside, who released a screech and could be heard going towards the source of the sound.

Wooseok counted to twenty and opened the door. His gun was already secure in his hand and his first shot echoed through the hospital hall.

The first infected fell.

After hearing this, the rest of the creatures appeared confused, some continued making their way towards the entrance and others rushed to their position.

“Get behind me.” Said Wooseok quickly. Jinhyuk wanted to help but he knew better than to disobey the other in this situation. Playing the hero could turn out to be a terrible idea, especially when he had learned to use a gun just two hours ago.

The infected were coming right at them but Wooseok was moving forward. Jinhyuk thought he had finally lost his mind.

But suddenly two other shots could be heard from the entrance, two other infected down.

Wooseok had come forward because he had trusted that Seungyoun would be there just in time to help them. Jinhyuk suddenly wondered how many times had they went through this… Just how many difficulties had they gone through to learn how to deal with these situations? He felt bad. People were out there risking their lives, learning new skills, while he had been hiding in the underground. 

They were really close to the exit, only a few more infected on sight and Wooseok was getting ready to shoot them when they heard a screech coming from behind them. There had been one creature that had been hiding somewhere else apparently. It had probably come out because of all the ruckus they were making.

The creature went towards them at full speed but Seungyoun and Wooseok were already occupied. He had to do something, he refused to keep being a burden. He took his gun with trembling hands, trying to be as fast as he could, but the infected was faster and knocked Jinhyuk to the ground with force. 

The infected had knocked him almost behind a set of sofas so the others lost sight of Jinhyuk. He could hear the echo of his companion voices but couldn't see them. The dizziness he felt was of no help either, the impact had been too strong. But he was fully awakened by the feeling of teeth sinking on the skin of his leg.

Jinhyuk panicked and rapidly took the gun and planted a bullet through the creature’s head… but it was too late. He had already been bitten.

He just hoped neither Wooseok nor Seungyoun hadn’t seen that. If they knew he had been bitten, they would leave him there to die and he still had to see his brother.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry ;; I know I'm not good at writing action scenes but I tried my best for y'all  
Please stay healthy!  
Any inquiries, questions, insults (?) or whatever you want, kindly refer to my twitter @wblobfishbells
> 
> See you guys next time!


	5. Man or Monster

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi~ I'm back with another chapter and I just want to warn you that SHIT'S ABOUT TO GO DOWN  
This particular chapter contains A LOT OF SWEARING and TRIGGER WARNING-death / little tiny whiny bit of cannibalism -since zombies eat people, sorry-  
I'll put a warning before that specific scene! Just skip it if you're not comfortable. (But I promise I wasn't really graphic)  
Anyways, enjoy it!

Jinhyuk was panicking. The bite mark on his leg hurt like hell. It hurt so much he could barely hold a scream of pain, but he had to be strong. If either Seungyoun or Wooseok found out what had happened, it would be the end for him. Luckily, they seemed to be busy fighting the rest of the infected but Jinhyuk needed to be quick.

He bit his mouth as hard as he could and inspected the bite. It was deep, blood was running out of it already. He needed to create a bandage as fast as he could so he held the hem of his shirt and pulled with force until the bottom part ripped.

“Jinhyuk, are you okay?!” Wooseok’s voice echoed through all the chaos, he sounded so worried… Jinhyuk hated having to lie to him but somewhere deep in his heart he knew Wooseok would not hesitate to kill him if he learned the truth.

He was in so much pain, he was scared of letting a sound but it would be suspicious not to answer so he just took a deep breath and shouted. “I’m fine! Just a scratch!” said the tall boy while he bandaged his calf rapidly. They needed to get to the refugee fast if he wanted to see Jinwoo before they knew about his predicament.

Jinhyuk used a lot of strength to get up from the ground but no matter what, he had to bear it. Before he could analyze his surroundings, Wooseok ran to him and held him from his shoulders, looking intensely at his face as if searching for any injury.

Wooseok scanned his entire body with his big eyes, trying to make sure that the older was really okay. His eyes stopped moving when they found the bandage on his leg. Jinhyuk gulped as silently as he could. He could already feel the sweat forming on his face.

“Is your leg okay? What happened?” asked the smaller boy while inching down to inspect the injury further. Jinhyuk had to act fast before the other could even think about taking the bandage out. He knew for a fact that he was a pretty bad liar…

“Those things have pretty damn sharp nails.” Said Jinhyuk sighing and pointing at the infected on the floor with his head. Wooseok followed his gaze and stared at the creature for a little bit too long before looking at Jinhyuk’s injury once again. The taller could practically hear the engines running in his mind. This was bad.

“It didn’t… right?” Asked the doe-eyed boy. No more words were necessary, Jinhyuk had understood the implications behind that question, a question which answer could change everything between them: ‘It didn’t bit you, right?’ There was something in his voice that made Jinhyuk believe for a second that Wooseok was trying to convince himself that everything was alright.

He needed to be strong. He needed to see Jinwoo no matter what and if that entailed lying to the person who had continuously saved his life and helped him, then he would do it. He just hoped nothing serious happened before that.

“You have nothing to worry about.” Finally answered Jinhyuk faking a big smile. He didn’t realize his hand had moved to ruffle Wooseok’s hair. ‘Please believe me’ he pleaded silently in his mind.

But Wooseok’s eyes didn’t change. They were full of worry… and… doubt?

Before any other word could be uttered, Seungyeon cleared his throat.

“Sorry to interrupt this heartfelt moment but we should go… now” Unlike Wooseok, the tall man just gave a quick glance towards Jinhyuk’s calf. “Are you okay, buddy? Can you walk with that?”

Jinhyuk just nodded, afraid that his voice would betray him if he spoke.

“Then let’s go… There’s no time to waste.”

Seungyoun strode towards the truck but instead of following suit, Wooseok waited for Jinhyuk to start walking. His eyes were still clouded by something that Jinhyuk couldn’t pinpoint.

He gulped and used all the strength he had left to start walking. His leg stung each time he took a step but he needed to bear it no matter what. He knew that if the others found out he had been bitten, they would kill him without a doubt, no questions asked, no explanations needed. He needed to buy himself some time.

They were in front of the vehicle when a voice sounded from behind him and Jinhyuk froze.

“Youn, I’ll go in the back with Jinhyuk.” Stated Wooseok as he passed by Jinhyuk to open the back door of the truck. Seungyoun simply shrugged and got in the driver’s seat, getting the engine ready.

Part of the ride was silent… but it wasn’t a comfortable silence, on the contrary, it was a silence full of unanswered questions and heavy implications. Wooseok wouldn’t stop looking at him, at his injury. Was he just worried? Was he mad that Jinhyuk had caused them trouble? Had the boy realized Jinhyuk had lied to him? Too many questions, but Jinhyuk wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to any of them.

Seungyeoun seemed to have sensed the awkward silence as well but instead of commenting on it, he tried to break the ice. Or at least, that was what Jinhyuk imagined.

“It seems like there aren’t any more infected in this area… I mean, we made ruckus back there. I thought we would have alerted all the creatures but not many showed up.” He turned his head to look at Wooseok with a curious expression in his face. “I guess your little theory might actually be right.” Jinhyuk’s curiosity was peaked. A theory? What could it be? Some kind of weakness?

“Eyes on the road. How many times will I have to say it?” said Wooseok with an annoyed voice. He massaged his temple after snapping at Seungyoun… Wooseok seemed to have a lot in his mind. The small boy released a deep sigh and opened his eyes.

“I’m sorry… I just wanna get home quickly…” He looked at Jinhyuk, who was right next to him and then stole a glance at the bandage on his calf. Wooseok had not said anything of it but Jinhyuk had the impression that the younger boy suspected something. He REALLY hoped it wasn’t the case, he really hoped Wooseok was actually worried about his injury or something like that but the answer lay on the small boy’s eyes and Jinhyuk didn’t like that answer very much.

Seungyoun just brushed it off, stating that they had all had a rough day so he didn’t blame the doe-eyed boy for not feeling well. Instead, he decided to just share Wooseok’s theory with Jinhyuk himself. The tall man welcomed the distraction. It was already difficult to keep his cool despite the pain and Wooseok’s piercing eyes made it ten times more difficult.

“The thing is… Wooseok here believes that there are less infected each time because they are dying.” Jinhyuk crooked his head… He didn’t understand what the other was trying to get at. Before he could ask anything, Seungyoun continued. “And you may be thinking ‘wow, why are they dying? Are the remaining survivors doing an excellent job at killing them? Some kind of incredible weapon? Welp, my friend… Wooseok is pretty sure they are dying… of…”

“They’re dying of hunger.” Intercepted Wooseok. Seungyoun looked at him from the rearview mirror with a disappointed expression.

“Hey, I was getting to it!”

But Wooseok didn’t pay attention to whatever his friend was saying, instead, he looked at Jinhyuk and continued explaining.

“You may know that all this started because of a virus.” Jinhyuk nodded, he knew that very well. “So despite some people calling these creatures ‘zombies’, the truth is they are not dead people who came back to life. Their genes were modified in some way and their organs function differently than us… I believe some of them don’t function at all but I’m not sure.” Wooseok was really observant, Jinhyuk noted. Not only because of all this information but also because he didn’t miss the stolen glances the smaller male threw towards the bite on his leg.

“The thing is… they are running out of food. And by food, I mean…”

“Us.” Finished Seungyoun while flashing a big smile.

“That’s why they won’t be interested in converting anyone. They’ll attack us…just to eat us.”

Jinhyuk was beyond surprised with all this. If the infected were dying… how long would it take for all of them to become extinct? He remembered clearly when the first wave of infected had hit Seoul. He remembered that day at the train station as if it had been yesterday. He saw things that day that would change him forever, that would make him want to seclude himself for a year and leave everything behind. Was it possible for that madness to ever stop? He wanted to believe it… and then he looked at Wooseok again, who in turn was looking at his bandage.

Oh… right…

“Sorry to interrupt when you’re getting to the good part but… we’re almost there.”

There was some kind of relief in Seungyoun’s voice when he had said that. Maybe he was also getting crushed by the awkward air that surrounded them or maybe he was just glad to be back.

A rush of nervousness took control of Jinhyuk. This was it. Jinwoo was only a few minutes away. Had he changed a lot? A year had passed, he must have grown up a little. Would he… hate him?

Jinhyuk had been so excited to meet his brother that he never stopped to think about the younger’s reaction. They had been separated for a year. How would Jinwoo react when he knew his brother had been safe and sound all this time? He didn’t know anything about the things Jinwoo had to go through. His little brother… he was forced to grow up at such a young age. ‘Why didn’t you look for me?’ he feared that question because there was no right answer. ‘Because I’m a coward’. That would be the only honest answer he could give. Suddenly excitement began to turn into fear. He wasn’t ready for his brother to hate him… but still… he wanted to see him, more than anything.

“Once we’re in, go take the medicine to Seungwoo, he’ll know what to do,” said Seungyoun. “I’ll take the rest of the stuff we brought, don’t worry about that.”

“Roger.” Answered Wooseok.

“Jinhyuk, you should also go see Seungwoo for a check-up just in case.” Seungyoun hadn’t forgotten about the other’s injury.

The tall boy just nodded. Of course he didn’t intend for anyone to see the bite. He would find an excuse when the moment came but maybe that doctor could tell him something about Jinwoo’s condition, even take him to his brother. He couldn’t lose this opportunity. Of course he was afraid, he was scared shitless, of Jinwoo’s reaction, of the bite being discovered, of whatever they would do to him. He had to get to Jinwoo as fast as he could. Only one glance would be enough…

The truck pulled over and Jinhyuk looked ahead. There, in front of them, a huge building stood. Based on the different watchtowers, it seemed to be an abandoned prison. So this was the refuge… It seemed safe enough from the outside, the walls were tall enough to prevent any infected from climbing, the only entrance on sight was the big front door, made of iron apparently and the watchtowers would be of good use to inspect the surroundings. But shouldn’t someone actually be there for it to function?

“Something’s not right.” Said Wooseok, as if reading Jinhyuk’s thoughts. “There’s no one at the watchtower… Whose shift is it today?”

“Tony’s…” answered Seungyoun squinting his eyes. Something was definitely not right.

Seungyoun got out of the car and stood in front of the big door. He started knocking loudly on it. “Hey! It’s Seungyoun! Anybody there?”

Jinhyuk could feel Wooseok holding his breath or maybe it was him who was doing it. Everything was just too silent.

There was no answer from the other side so Seungyoun knocked with more force this time, the sound of iron plaguing his ears. “We’re back! Hey!”

The seconds of silence that followed felt like the longest seconds in their lives. But that silence was broken by a loud bang and a screeching sound… A screech so familiar it froze all the blood in his system.

“FUCK!” Seungyoun voice felt suddenly louder than anything else.

“We’ll leave the car here and enter through the small door. Take only the necessary… and by necessary I mean, take a motherfucking gun…”

Both Wooseok and Jinhyuk didn’t waste time and did the same. Seungyoun and Wooseok were pale while they ran to the other door. Jinhyuk was doing their best to keep up but it only increased the pain on his leg. He wasn’t sure if he was more afraid of whatever was going on inside the refuge or the burning sensation on his calf.

The “small door” was located on the right of the building, hidden behind some bushes and branches in order to not bring any unwanted visitors inside guessed Jinhyuk. Once they were in front of the door, Seungyoun knelt on the floor and took something from his pocket. It took Jinhyuk a moment to understand that Seungyoun was picking the lock. He was sweating… More like all of them were sweating.

Jinhyuk was worried sick. Jinwoo was inside… just like that creature. Suddenly, the idea of Jinwoo hating him wasn’t so terrible, not as terrible as the idea of losing his little brother. The tall boy knew the others were probably feeling the same or even more worried than him… Inside there was the only family they had left, the family they had built a year and a half ago.

The door finally opened and they all rushed inside and started walking through a long corridor. Some light could be seen from the end of it, probably leading to a courtyard or something like that? Jinhyuk was last on the line but Wooseok took his arm and moved him in between him and Seungyoun, his eyes sending a silent warning message. Seungyoun made them a gesture, indicating not to make any noise as to not alert the creature of their presence.

There wasn’t another soul in sight though, everyone else seemed to have vanished. He wanted to ask if the people there had some kind of contingency plan for this kind of cases but right now they had another problem in front of them.

[A/N: This scene contains mentions of death and cannibalism (since zombies eat ppl)]

Just as Jinhyuk had guessed, the door at the end of the corridor gave way to a big courtyard and a figure was standing at the other side of it, looking away from them, too occupied feeding itself with the body in front of it.

He felt the breath of the others hitching. Jinhyuk had no attachment to the person who lay dead over there but for the others, he had been a member of their family, someone who had helped them in some way in order to build up the community they had. Jinhyuk didn’t forget how Wooseok had referred to this place as “home”. Suddenly he felt sick, but the remainder of that bite on his body made the sickness even worse.

  
[A/N: end of scene]

Seungyoun could not control the emotions inside of him and aimed his gun towards the creature, ready to blow its head off. Jinhyuk thought he would be crying, based on his heavy breathing but when he looked at his face, only pure rage could be seen.

“SON OF A BITCH.” Seungyoun’s voice echoed through the whole courtyard. He pulled the trigger but Wooseok grabbed his shoulder with force screaming a loud “wait” and the shot deviated to a nearby wall.

The raven-haired boy was about to give Wooseok a peace of his mind for having distracted him but before that, Wooseok whispered a weak “look” and pointed at the creature who was now looking at them intensely.

“Fuck.” Was the only thing that Seungyoun could utter at that moment. Right after that, the creature let out a shriek.

“RUN!” Ordered the boy and they started marching, the infected doing exactly the same, going towards them. They were heading towards another door as fast as they could but Jinhyuk felt he was going to collapse at any time. The pain on his leg was already unbearable, he couldn’t go on even if he wanted.

And just like that, he fell.

He felt the impact of the cold floor on his shoulder. He tried to get up but it was too painful. Wooseok turned around and saw Jinhyuk on the floor but instead of running to help him, he stood there, frozen.

The smaller boy’s face was full of different things: doubt, fear, panic, distrust, longing, he couldn't pinpoint which of them. He kept looking towards the infected, Jinhyuk, and Jinhyuk’s leg. It was at that exact moment that Jinhyuk was certain that Wooseok hadn’t believed his stupid act. Wooseok knew very well that back in the hospital, he had been bitten and now he was wondering if it even served a purpose to save Jinhyuk.

Jinhyuk was afraid. He didn’t want to die. He mumbled ‘please’ so many times, while looking at Wooseok but the boy didn’t move, his face now full of panic, wondering what to do.

He heard the creature close to him. ‘They’ll attack us… just to eat us’. Those words resonated on his mind while tears were threatening to fall. No. It couldn’t end like this. He still had so many things to do. He wanted to see his brother, he wanted to know that he was okay, he wanted to have a different life, he wanted to help, he wanted to kiss Wooseok again… He wanted to live.

“What the fuck are you doing?”

Seungyoun had run towards him and kicked the infected on the stomach, giving him time to lift Jinhyuk from the ground, put his arm on his shoulder, and resume his running.

Wooseok had come out of his stupor and quickly followed them, closing the door behind once they had reached the other corridor.

Their breaths were uneven and shaky. Seungyoun left Jinhyuk on the floor and turned towards Wooseok with an angry look on his face.

“What the hell was that, Wooseok?” The younger one stayed silent, looking at the ground with a troubled expression on his face. “That was really NOT the time to be frozen in panic… I let you come with me because I know you can stomach these things well. This is not like you at all.”

Wooseok just gulped and kept staring at the floor, after a second he just muttered a single sentence and that same sentence made Seungyoun feel sorry for having snapped at him.

“You saw the creature’s face… right?”

Now, it was Seungyoun’s turn to look at the floor. “Yes… It was Donghyun.”

They stood there, not daring to look at each other faces or anywhere else. Jinhyuk felt out of place. He had understood a bit part of the conversation. Apparently, the infected they had encountered was someone from the refuge. A friend. A friend who was now screeching outside. Jinhyuk wanted to vomit.

Wooseok broke the silence. “Let’s find the others… They must be in the underground refuge.” Seungyoun nodded and put a hand on Wooseok’s shoulder.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you.”

Wooseok brushed him off with an “it’s okay” and then turned to look at Jinhyuk, who was still sitting on the floor. “The door is not too far from here but we still don’t know if there’s more of them… Seungyoun, can you go and see if the way is clear? I’ll take care of Jinhyuk here… Besides, a little rest may help him feel better.”

He didn’t know why. But Jinhyuk had a bad feeling about this.

“Roger that… I’ll be back as soon as I can.” Wooseok nodded and with that, Seungyoun left.

Once he was out of sight, the small boy took the gun from his belt and pointed it towards Jinhyuk. “Take off the bandage.”

Jinhyuk was beyond surprised. He had just escaped an encounter with death; he wasn’t expecting to have a gun pointing at him minutes after. This was exactly what he was trying to avoid. “Wh-what?” was the only thing Jinhyuk got to say. He couldn’t take off the bandage. The moment he did that, Wooseok would surely shoot him, no questions asked.

“I said… take off the bandage.” Wooseok’s eyes were cold as ice but Jinhyuk could see his hand shaking slightly. “or I’ll do it myself.”

Jinhyuk was backed into a corner. He had never been a religious person, coming from a scientist's family being one of the main reasons but now he just wanted to close his eyes and pray to any god out there. With a heavy heart, he started untangling his improvised bandage as slowly as he could and finally revealed his leg. There it stood, red and swollen, a bite mark. He waited for the shot but it never came. Jinhyuk opened his eyes slowly and looked at Wooseok, who had a troubled expression. He seemed to be fighting with himself and with whatever his mind was telling him to do.

“I don’t get it…” whispered Wooseok. “It’s been hours… Why have you not converted? That’s clearly a bite mark! How the hell are you still here?” Wooseok raised his voice progressively with each question.

This was his chance, Jinhyuk thought. It seemed Wooseok would be able to listen to him now. He was frozen with fear, Wooseok’s gun had not left his hand and it was still pointing at him but he had to seem calm, otherwise, the other boy would never believe him. He took a deep breath before speaking.

“That’s because I’m immune.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welp... that's it.  
I just want to say that last chapter I received a lot of backlash for what had happened hahaha hope you aren't mad with me anymore :( ..... or maybe not.


	6. Tearing Us Apart

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, I'm back! Sorry for being absent for so long. I hit a slump and was not confident with my writing but I've been working on it and I'm feeling better now. Thank you for being patient with me! I promise I will finish this, no matter how long it takes me ;; ♥  
I've been teasing my friends from the weishin squad about this story a lot hehe let's see if their predictions are correct!  
Once again, thank you for all the encouragement and patience

“That’s because I’m immune.”

Wooseok couldn’t believe his ears. He thought he had Heard wrong but the seriousness in the other’s face filled him with doubt.

There were two voices ringing inside of his head at that exact moment. The loudest voice wondered if Jinhyuk thought he was so gullible and stupid as to believe that unprobeable story. He knew that in the face of desperation, people were capable of saying anything to survive… but at what cost? Was Jinhyuk really that selfish? Would he put the life of at least fifty people at risk? Wooseok would have liked to believe he was different. Up until now, Jinhyuk had shown himself as a selfless person and Jinwoo stories about his brother also presented him as such. That’s why there was a quieter voice in his mind, urging him to believe the taller man.

“Do you expect me to believe that?” But Wooseok had to be cold blooded. He hadn’t arrived this far by being nice, and he had to go through many trials just to stay alive. The hand that was holding the gun didn’t falter and kept pointing at Jinhyuk. ‘Don’t give me hope just to let me down later, Jinhyuk. Please.’ Whispered the quiet voice on his head.

“I’m still here… and I’m still me. What other proof do you need?”

Wooseok wanted to believe, he really wanted to but doubt was still present in his mind. However, no matter how he looked at it, there was no logical explanation for what was going on in front of his eyes. All ‘transformations’ happened after seconds of having been bitten. Stronger people took a little longer but no more than twenty minutes and even that number was generous.

Another strong point in favour of Jinhyuk was his calmness. The only reason he seemed fazed was the gun pointing towards his head. He had been nervous the entire trip but that could have easily been attributed to his efforts to keep the bite hidden. But… that also implied that Jinhyuk already knew he was immune. Why hadn’t he said anything? Did he just realize this and assumed that was the case?

“Why didn’t you tell me before?” He needed to be sure. He couldn’t take any chances.

“Would you have listened to my explanation back then? Seungyoun and you would have killed me the moment you saw the mark.”

He had a point. But even so… Wooseok wasn’t so sure he could have done it. Not very different from now.

Slowly, he lowered the gun and put it in the hem of his trousers. "You don't know that." It was merely a whisper, he wasn't sure if Jinhyuk had heard him."How do you know that you're immune?... or did you just find out?"

The taller male avoided his eyes. "I've known for a while…"

Wooseok was aware that, if what Jinhyuk was saying was true, this was major information. They had never come across an immune person before and he started wondering about the possibilities that lied ahead of them. He was not familiarized with science or medicine but a crazy thought would not leave his mind… What if they could create a cure?

"How do you know? Were you bitten before?" He spoke in a rushed tone and thought of making more questions but Jinhyuk still looked shook up after all the ordeal. After all, he could have died several times today.

"It's a long story…" 

"We've got time." And right after he had muttered those words, a loud 'bang' was heard followed by a series of grunts and screeches. Wooseok had forgotten about the creature outside. 

There was something foreign and heartbreaking at the thought of calling someone who used to be a good friend and a nice guy 'creature'. Wooseok wanted to scream.

"I take that back… we don't have time." He still wasn’t sure of what to believe regarding Jinhyuk’s revelations but he decided to take a shot. He was putting his life on the line for this so his gut better be right.

He took the walkie talkie from his back pocket and tried to reach Seungyoun. Some considerable time had passed so he guessed the older should have come across the basement door by now. He really hoped the other hadn't encountered any other infected on the way there.

"Hey, I was about to contact you. The west wing is clear. Go through there and meet me at the west door." Luckily, Seungyiun's response came faster than expected. They should start making their way there.

He saw Jinhyuk trying his best to get up on his own. Wooseok wanted to offer him a hand but the air was still awkward between them. Maybe pointing a gun at the other boy had not been the best decision.

"Can you walk?" He glanced at Jinhyuk's injury. The older was immune to the rage infection but that didn't mean that he couldn't get sick. They had to reach the doctor soon to treat Jinhyuk's leg.

"Yeah, I'll manage." A weak smile formed on Jinhyuk's face and Wooseok couldn't take it anymore.

He stood next to the taller male, took his arm and put it around his neck. "You can lean on me." His eyes met Jinhyuk's. "I know I'm short but I'm stronger than I look."

Wooseok didn't know how to describe it but Jinhyuk's eyes became tender. "I've noticed." He felt his cheeks redden. He tried to ignore his heartbeat and hoped the other boy did too. 

They started walking slowly towards the west door. Wooseok took notice of how Jinhyuk scanned the place. At the time, this abandoned prison seemed like the most practical place to make their hiding place. The walls were tall enough so no one from the outside could come in easily and they also had the watchtower which allowed them to be prepared in advance if any threat came near the refuge. But the place was so eerie that it had been difficult to call it a home at first. They were bound to feel like prisoners but with their safety at stake, nobody dared to complain. The only thing that kept them sane was the company of everyone in the refuge. Wooseok couldn't help but wonder how Jinhyuk could live so much time alone, without seeing or talking with another human being.

They’d have plenty of time to talk about that in the future. Right now, there were more urgent matters to take care of. Wooseok couldn’t stop wondering if anyone apart from Donghyun had been infected. He wanted to believe that they knew what to do. Protocols had been established in case of an emergency but he wondered if everyone had been pressured. After all, they had never gone through a real emergency. However, seeing how no one was on sight, he thought it was probable that all of them could make it to the basement… All but Tony.

The poor boy had probably been in the watchtower when hell broke out. It was very likely that he had seen Donghyun from up there and went down to help but Tony had never faced an infected before. He imagined that panic had taken the best of him and he hadn't tried to contact anyone. If only they had arrived a little earlier… Wooseok felt sick. He was the one who always insisted on going out... He suddenly remembered the morphin they had brought and wanted to hurry.

“Where exactly are we going?” wondered Jinhyuk out loud. Wooseok was so overwhelmed by everything that was going on that he hadn’t even thought about explaining the other anything. Maybe it wasn’t a bad idea that the taller male started getting accustomed to how things worked over there.

“The prison has an underground floor.” He quickened the pace but made sure to take a look at Jinhyuk’s wound to check. He didn’t seem to mind it much. “We go down there in case of emergencies.” But it’s not like they ever had to use it until this day.

“How many people live here?” 

“Twenty… I guess with you we’ll be-” he stopped mid sentence after a painful realization. Jinhyuk was an addition to the group… but they had already lost two people today. Tony was dead… and Donghyun was something worse than dead.

Jinhyuk seemed to notice Wooseok’s change on demeanour and didn’t push further. The smaller male wanted to change the topic but when he finally found the words, he saw Seungyoun waving ahead of them.

“You okay there, Jinhyuk?” Seungyoun looked at the boy’s leg with a worried expression but Jinhyuk just nodded and gave him a weak smile. “We’ll get to Seungwoo soon enough… he’s our medic.”

Seungyoun looked at the door in front of them and then to his companions. Wooseok got the message and, with his free hand, took a hold of his gun. Instead of opening the door at once, Seungyoun knocked on it loudly a couple of times. The shorter of the three had his gun ready in case another creature appeared. They stood there, waiting, listening… but they were met with silence. They seemed to be safe for now. 

Wooseok nodded to Seungyoun and the boy opened the door. They were welcomed by a set of stairs going downwards. “Let’s go.” said Seungyoun and led the way. The emergency light on the wall was flickering and the air felt cold, it gave Wooseok shivers. Jinhyuk seemed to notice this and placed his hand on the smaller male’s shoulder. He didn’t say anything but Wooseok felt comfort in that touch. He was too stressed… one of his friends was dead and the other had been infected, he didn’t know if anyone else had been bitten, he wasn’t sure if Jinwoo was safe… But he refused to lose hope. He had promised to reunite Jinwoo and Jinhyuk and he wasn’t going to panic or fall into despair before fulfilling that promise. He put his hand on top of the other male’s and gave him a little squeeze before mouthing ‘I’m okay’ and then he followed Seungyoun into the darkness.

He kept his gun up just in case while Seungyoun threw some stones on the way to make sure there was nobody else there. Wooseok turned around periodically to see how Jinhyuk was doing. He saw the taller male wince once or twice but if he was really in pain, he didn’t say anything. 

They reached another door and Seungyoun banged on it three times and said his name loudly. A few seconds of silence went by until they heard some sounds from behind the door, followed by it being opened drastically with a young man staring at them with wide eyes. 

“You’re back.” said Sejin. He seemed relieved. The rest came running from behind him and Dohyun dodged between all of them to hug Seungyoun tightly. Wooseok could see how his eyes were puffy and red and how he was shaking slightly.

“What the hell happened?” asked Seungyoun while patting Dohyun’s head. They all looked towards each other, wondering from where they should start. Wooseok saw some of them stealing some curious glances towards Jinhyuk but if they were surprised by his presence, they didn’t mention it. They were too worried about whatever was going on up there.

Eunsang was the first to speak among all the chaos. “We don’t know how it happened… It was all so sudden. I…” Seungyoun interrupted his tale to remind the younger boy to breathe. “Donghyun was bitten… we… we don’t know how. Tony said he would try to capture him but we haven’t heard any of…”

“Tony’s dead.” said Wooseok. Better tell them the truth upfront than to beat around the bush. He recalled that he had had arguments with some of his teammates because of his bluntness. Yuvin had gone as far to say that Wooseok was insensitive and lacked empathy. After some time, they just learned that it was Wooseok’s personality and he didn’t mean any harm. “We found him and Donghyun in the yard.”

Dohyun sniffed loudly and the rest remained silent. Wooseok could see the redness covering most of their eyes, some of them were fighting new tears from coming out, some others seemed to have cried so much that they had no energy left.They were expecting it... but it didn't make it less painful to hear.

Seungyoun took another look at the crowd surrounding him and arched his brows. “Where’s Hangyul?” Once again, the others looked at each other. It seemed that nobody wanted to answer in fear of Seungyoun’s reaction. Wooseok saw how Seungwoo made his way to the front of the group.

“He and Yunseong went to capture Donghyun a while ago.” Seungyoun’s eyes turned hard and icy and looked directly at their leader.

Before Seungyoun could say anything. Minhee interrupted. “Yunseong insisted! I told him it wasn’t a good idea but he wouldn’t let it go… Hangyul agreed to help him. They went through the east door a few minutes ago.”

Without a word, Seungyoun detached himself from Dohyun and pushed through the crowd in the direction of the east door ignoring the shouts of protests of some members of the group. Whenever it was about Hangyul, Seungyoun didn’t listen to any reason. 

On the other hand, Wooseok was more worried about Yunseong. He knew from Donghyun that there was something between them and from the way Donghyun gushed to him about the other boy, it seemed to have been pretty serious. 

He felt a pang on his chest after thinking about Donghyun smiling and blushing. He couldn’t even imagine what Yunseong was feeling at that same moment. Wooseok even had a feeling that if Hangyul hadn’t volunteered to go with him, Yunseong would have sneaked out alone anyways. 

Yohan looked at Seungwoo and asked the older man if he wasn’t planning on stopping Seungyoun but Seungwoo trusted his co leader blindly. They could only stay and hope that no one got hurt.

Wooseok felt movement next to him and was reminded of Jinhyuk’s presence. He seemed rather uncomfortable and worried. He kept looking towards the crowd, checking the faces one by one.  _ He’s looking for Jinwoo. _

“Seungwoo.” The boy responded to Wooseok’s call and turned towards him. Wooseok put a hand on Jinhyuk’s back and pushed him slightly forward.

“I see we have a new survivor among us. Welcome…” He looked at Jinhyuk from head to toe until he took notice of the other male’s injury. “Bring him to the clinic, Wooseok, let’s patch that up. We can go over the introductions later.”

“Is Jinwoo here?” They all turned their heads towards him after Jinhyuk had asked that question. Even Seungwoo looked mildly surprised.

“Y-yes… but how…?”

Wooseok intervened. “He is Jinwoo’s brother, Lee Jinhyuk.”

He witnessed as all of the eyes in the room opened. They knew Jinwoo had a brother but most of them were pretty sure he was already dead. Only Wooseok had fed Jinwoo's idea that Jinhyuk was alive.

Wooseok had met Jinwoo on that train. The wagon was supposed to be for boys not older than thirteen but Wooseok had found a way to squeeze in anyways. He didn't have any family left. His father was a soldier and he had been sent to fight the creatures that had been terrorizing the neighboring city… but Wooseok was pretty sure his father had to be dead by that time. They had fenced the border of the city in an attempt to curb the infection. His father had been trapped while he was trying to save the remaining survivors. He was not going to be the same fool. He was going to save himself first.

Jinwoo was one of the boys in that wagon. They wouldn't have crossed any word if Wooseok hadn't had a panic attack right then and there. The little boy was sitting close to him and he seemed to know exactly what he had to do. Once Jinwoo had helped Wooseok calm down, the little boy stuck to him the whole trip. And that's how they became friends.

They had plenty of talks about Jinwoo's past. The younger boy never failed to mention his brother in every important episode of his life. And Wooseok's curiosity grew with each story.

"When this is all over, I want to look for Jinhyuk." Wooseok didn't have the heart to tell him that his brother was probably dead. So he just nodded. But hearing Jinwoo talk every day about how sure he was that his brother had to be alive… It kind of gave Wooseok some hope too. 

When the group of survivors started with their first trips outside, Wooseok had insisted on going. He had learned shooting because of his father, which made him an important asset so they all agreed on letting him go. Before his first trip he made a promise with Jinwoo.

"I promise I'll bring your brother to you." He had intertwined his pinky finger with Jinwoo's and the boy had smiled. Wooseok didn't miss the little tears that started forming in the other boy's eyes while he nodded vigorously.

He felt discouraged many times but he pushed through… for Jinwoo. And he had made it. 

Back in the basement floor, everyone's eyes moved from Jinhyuk to Wooseok. Seungwoo smiled and called them over with his hand.

"Welcome, Jinhyuk… He's been waiting for you." He turned around and started walking, expecting the other two to follow him. 

Before following the older, he looked at Jinhyuk's leg and then at his face. "Can you walk?"

"I don't trust my legs." After looking at the taller man's face he noticed something strange. Jinhyuk was afraid. 

Slowly, one of his hands sneaked around Jinhyuk's and rubbed circles on it. with his thumb. "I promise everything will be okay." Their eyes met for a second, all the tension that seemed to have surrounded them lifted. "He missed you so much…"

Jinhyuk gulped and then looked to the front, where Seungwoo was waiting for them. "I miss him too." Answered Jinhyuk using present tense. "Let's go." He looked more determined. Wooseok was relieved. 

He knew that they needed to talk, that Jinhyuk was hiding many things… but they'd had time for that. He just prayed everything was going alright up there.

Jinhyuk didn't let go of Wooseok's hand when he started following Seungwoo. Wooseok was glad that he could provide some strength to the taller male. He didn't miss Seungwoo's curious glance towards their intertwined hands but he would have to deal with his questions later.

______

Seungyoun exited the door with his gun held up high. He knew he had to be careful but he also needed to be fast. He had the advantage to know that there were no other infected apart from Donghyun. 

He started running through the corridor that led to the yard. If he was lucky, Donghyun would still be there. But before he could reach the yard, he heard a pained screech from the cafeteria. 

Seungyoun had never run so fast in his life before. He hoped Hangyul and Yunseong were okay. Hangyul had already dealt with Infected creatures before: he had accompanied Wooseok to some of the explorations before Seungyoun had forbidden him to go out three weeks ago after they both had a close encounter with a group of newly infected creatures. They had made it alive but they had also lost all their supplies. Nobody had been mad at the time, the rest of the group was just relieved that they were okay but Seungyoun was fuming. He had scolded them sternly and called Hangyul reckless and unprepared. Hangyul and him hadn't been on speaking terms since then.

The cafeteria doors were open when he arrived and the scene inside almost gave him a heart attack. Most of the tables were turned upside down, two of them were already broken but the state of the furniture wasn't exactly Seungyoun's worry. Right in front of his eyes, Hangyul was on the floor grabbing Donghyun's hands and pushing forward, trying to prevent the infected from biting him. Donghyun was frenetic, he kept screeching and shuffling, trying to find some place to bite.

Seungyoun felt his conscience left him… He always lost his temper when it was about Hangyul. He forgot about Donghyun, about the innocent boy he had once been. In front of him, there was a filthy creature about to keep him away from another important person to him. 

His hand moved on his own. The gun was now pointing towards the creature that used to be Donghyun. His intention was to shoot it on the head. But right before he pulled the trigger, he heard a pained scream, this time human, saying "no" and he also felt a pair of arms pushing his own, causing the bullet to crash against the lamp on the ceiling.

Yunseong had prevented him from killing Donghyun. 

Seungyoun was about to give him a piece of his mind when he noticed that the creature had diverted its attention from Hangyul to them. Donghyun charged forward and Seungyoun was thinking of ways he could apologize to Yunseong after what he was about to do.

He pushed the other male away and raised his gun once more but before he could take the shot, he watched as Donghyun closed his eyes and fell to the ground. Behind him, stood Hangyul, a syringe in hand. 

"I told you the animal tranquilizer would be useful some time." It was the first normal sentence Hangyul had spoken to Seungyoun after days of being mad at him.

Seungyoun wanted to run and hug him but he also wanted to smack them both. He took Yunseong by the collar and looked at him sternly. “What do you think you’re doing?” He shook the younger male repeatedly. “Do you think this is some kind of game?”

Yunseong didn’t react. He stood there without moving, looking down at Donghyun’s body on the floor, tears gathering in his eyes.

Hangyul quickly intervened and separated both boys. “Let’s just take Donghyun to a cell and talk with the others about what to do.” 

“What to do? We have to kill it, no discussion.” Yunseong’s eyes finally looked up at Seungyoun and shook his head violently. Seungyoun ignored him. This was no time to be sentimental. If Yunseong hadn’t learned that by now, this would be the perfect opportunity. “Also… stop calling that thing Donghyun. That’s not your friend anymore.”

In spite of his words, he put a sack on top of the creature’s head and carried it on his shoulder. “Let’s go. We can’t risk it waking up.”

________

Jinhyuk thanked the heavens that Wooseok didn’t comment on his sweaty palm or his shaking hand. He thought he could face his brother after all but a part of him was still scared. That’s why when the smaller male had taken his hand, he had felt a little relief. Someone stood by him. Jinhyuk was afraid that if he let go of Wooseok’s hand, he would lose the small amount of courage he had managed to gather. He knew he owed Wooseok an explanation and that he hadn’t been fair with the boy but he wanted to make things right from now on and reuniting with his brother was the first step.

He glanced towards the new unfamiliar person in front of him. The man was tall and seemed well built. Jinhyuk didn’t miss the way he had stood out among the other people. Even if nobody had told him, he could have guessed that Seungwoo was the leader of this small group of survivors. There was this aura of kindness that emanated from this man that instantly calmed his nerves. 

Seungwoo did small talk on the way, mainly telling Jinhyuk about the facility and the rules they had there. There weren’t many and most of them were about avoiding confrontations and being fair. They had frequent gatherings where they decided about important matters but sometimes they just got together to talk and play games. 

“It’s been a while since we’ve seen a new face so please excuse everyone if they bother you too much. They’re just curious.” said the man with a kind smile. He hadn’t asked anything about Jinhyuk so he wondered if he would rely on Wooseok for that or if they would hold some kind of meeting to introduce him. He was already sweating by thinking about it. It had been a while since he last saw another person too and suddenly being in front of twenty people kind of overwhelmed him. He wasn’t exactly sure how to relate to people anymore.

He just nodded and didn’t say anything. He didn’t trust his voice at that moment. After a few more minutes of walking they stopped in front of a door. Seungwoo was holding the doorknob and explaining they were using that room as the medical bay until they could get a hold of the upper floors again.

Wooseok stood in front of Jinhyuk before they could enter. “Is he okay?” he tried to whisper but the aisle was so silent that Jinhyuk heard him anyway. Just how bad was Jinwoo’s condition? 

Seungwoo simply sighed. “He’s hanging in there…”

“What… what exactly happened to him?” Jinhyuk dared to speak up after a while. 

“An accident. He was training and accidentally cut his leg with a knife. It wasn’t that serious but since we didn’t have enough medical supplies the cut got infected…” Seungwoo’s voice was calming and Jinhyuk couldn’t help but think it was exactly the way doctors delivered bad news.

Before Jinhyuk could answer, Wooseok took two of the morphine vials they had retrieved from the abandoned hospital and handed them over to Seungwoo. The leader’s eyes opened up in surprise. He looked at the shorter male and shook his head in amusement. “I should never underestimate your ability to find everything you’re searching for so desperately.” Jinhyuk thought he had imagined it but he could swear Seungwoo glanced at his direction. 

“There’s more in the car outside,” was the only answer Wooseok gave. Seungwoo nodded once again and examined the vials in his hand. “I have to go somewhere. Can you take care of Jinhyuk while I’m not here?” 

“Wooseok.” Seungwoo’s voice had turned from amused to stern. “It’s dangerous to go alone anywhere right now. I must insist that you wait until we hear from Seungyoun and the others.” 

“You don’t understand, this is important… If the reason Donghyun was converted was because of the solitary confinement aisle then... ” He was about to run off when Seungwoo grabbed him by the arm.

“I already took care of it.” said Seungwoo grimly.

“Did you kill them?”

“Yes.” Wooseok looked as if he wanted to protest but he just nodded and bit his lip. Jinhyuk was completely lost. Who had been killed? Other members of the group? Was he supposed to be there while they were having this conversation?

“Do the others know?” Asked Wooseok in a weak voice.

“Not all of them but they’re going to ask about it sooner or later. Yuvin seemed especially agitated.” Wooseok seemed troubled. Jinhyuk could only hold his hand tighter, hoping he could give the other boy some kind of comfort, even if he didn’t understand what was going on. But what he understood is that Wooseok seemed troubled.

Before anyone else uttered a word, a weak voice came from behind the door. 

“Wooseokie? Is that you?” 

Jinhyuk froze in place. That voice. He would recognize it from a million miles away. It sounded tired and a little raspier than what he remembered but there was no doubt. It was Jinwoo’s voice. 

They all looked clueless as to what to do next but Seungwoo opened the door a little. “Jinwoo... Wooseok is back… and it seems he brought you a present.”

The tall male gulped and took a deep breath. What would Jinwoo’s reaction be? He felt dizzy. He wanted to run away. He wanted to open that door. He didn’t know what to do. He looked at Wooseok to find support but Wooseok seemed as troubled as him.

Seungwoo just nudged Wooseok with his elbow and put a hand on Jinhyuk’s shoulder. “He’s been waiting for you… Go to him.”

He took the first step and opened the door while holding his breath. There, at the opposite wall, his brother, who used to be so small, was there staring at him with wide eyes. He looked pale and weak, no sign of the rosy cheeks Jinhyuk remembered so vividly. He didn't know how to put it but he could see that Jinwoo had grown up… in more ways than one. 

Jinhyuk couldn't stand it anymore and he started crying like a child. He had never cried that hard for a long time. The tall man was fighting the urge to run and hug his little brother. He looked so frail that Jinhyuk was scared to break him if he got too close. Jinwoo was also crying, calling desperately to his older brother as if he wanted to make sure that it wasn't a fragment of his imagination.

Jinhyuk felt how Wooseok's hand gave him a little push from the back, urging him to move forward. He complied but moved slowly, taking in each feature of Jinwoo's face. He held the boy's hand, that hand that used to feel so small in his felt foreign now. Jinwoo's free hand, slowly but surely, found its way on top of his older brother's. "You're really here."

Jinhyuk was sobbing at that point. He held his brother's hand tightly. "I am… and I'll never leave again." He needed to say what was killing him inside, he needed to be honest with Jinwoo. "I'm sorry… I'm sorry that your brother was too much of a coward to look for you earlier. I wish I was stronger… but I just let you down."

Jinwoo shook his head slowly and guided his brother's face up so that they were facing each other. "I'm just happy you are here now…" Jinwoo had always had a big heart and Jinhyuk was so proud of his little brother. He wanted to say so many things, to ask so many questions, to share so many stories but he didn't even know where to begin.

"Wooseokie…" Jinwoo directed his attention to the other boy who stood at the other end of the room. Jinhyuk noticed that Seungwoo had left, presumably to give them some space but Wooseok had stayed with them. "Thank you for keeping your promise." He then beckoned the boy over.

Once Wooseok was at the other end of Jinwoo's bed, the small boy took his hand. Now one of his hands was holding his brother and the other was holding Wooseok. Jinwoo turned towards Jinhyuk. "Wooseokie promised to find you and bring you back to me." He then showed him a blinding smile and guided Wooseok's hand to rest on top of Jinhyuk's. "You are both really important brothers to me so you have to get along well, okay?" 

Jinhyuk and Wooseok looked at each other and then at their hands, a little blush covered both their faces while they nodded. Jinwoo seemed ecstatic.

But the magic was broken when someone entered the room. It was Seungwoo.

"Sorry to interrupt this tender moment," said the leader as he stole a glance towards the boys' hands. Wooseok let go quickly and looked away embarrassed. "But, Seungyoun and the others are back. We're holding a meeting upstairs."

Wooseok nodded and stood up. He looked at Jinwoo and promised him to be back as soon as possible. 

"I left Seungyoun in charge." Wooseok gave him a puzzled look. "I'll stay here and treat Jinwoo with what you brought. Better not to lose any time." The medic then turned to the man sitting next to Jinwoo. "Jinhyuk, you should stay here and let me treat the wound on your leg too." 

He got nervous. If Seungwoo took the bandage out, he would find the bite mark and the questions would start again. He didn’t want to cause a scene in front of Jinwoo. “It’s okay! The pain has faded already!” Jinhyuk was aware that he was a shitty liar, his voice always betrayed him. Seungwoo arched a brow, confusion clear on his face.

“Still, we should disinfect it, just in case.”

Jinhyuk was biting his lips hard. He had planned to tell his story to Wooseok first and let the boy decide what to do with that information. He had his reasons to keep everything hidden. He didn’t want to be hated, he didn’t want to be left alone again.

Luckily for him, Wooseok intervened. “I’ll help him do it after the meeting. I think it’s a good opportunity for Jinhyuk to meet the others and see how we manage here.”

“Still… I recommend he treats it now, just in-.”

“Seungyoun gets moody if we’re late. I promise we won’t take long.” He took Jinhyuk’s arm, ignoring his leader’s protest. Jinhyuk was secretly grateful. He owed Wooseok a bunch. 

Jinhyuk took one last glance at Jinwoo and gave him a smile. "I'll come back later, okay?" His younger brother nodded and wished them both the best of luck.

"It will surely get heated… Sorry that I cannot be there" mentioned Seungwoo before they left the medical bay. Wooseok only nodded and said that it was okay but the expression that his face wore said otherwise.

____

Wooseok still couldn’t get why Jinhyuk didn’t want to talk about his immunity. He guessed there was something personal in the story he had promised to tell him. But who was Wooseok to judge him, when he also had been keeping secrets from the rest… and the consequences were about to come right back at him.

Meetings were generally held at the gym so Wooseok started heading there with Jinhyuk following from behind. He was not sure about leaving Jinwoo and Seungwoo alone in the underground floor but at the same time, it was the safer place for them at the time. Though, If Seungwoo had really taken care of the possible cause of Donghyun’s transformation then Wooseok didn’t think it was probable that they would have another problem. 

He was nervous anyways… 

There really wasn’t any way to calm his raging heart. Now matter how many deep breaths he took before entering the gym, he wasn’t prepared at all for this conversation. Donghyun’s destiny was pretty much unavoidable… the right thing to do for the rest of them was to kill him. Wooseok didn’t know if he would ever be ready to discuss the death of a friend.

With a heavy heart, he opened the door and met the familiar faces in there. The air seemed tense. He glanced around the gymnasium and could see a variety of expressions painted on each face. Hangyul was the one closest to him. He had greeted him with a nod and a tired smile and Wooseok was so relieved that he was okay. Even after the Jinwoo situation he had not stopped worrying about his friends who were risking their lives trying to capture the creature. At first Wooseok didn’t notice but after another inspection, he saw the younger boy’s arm covered in a bandage. He hoped it was nothing serious but if Hangyul was in pain, he didn’t let it show. 

His gaze immediately moved towards Seungyoun who was in turn staring at Hangyul with a frown. Wooseok knew that both of them hadn’t been on the best of terms the last few weeks but he was also aware of the secret make out sessions both of them had shared since a while ago. Wooseok had been unfortunate enough to catch them in the act. They had never told anyone though and Wooseok was not fond of starting rumors so he refrained from telling the others as well but he just hoped they got their shit together eventually. However, Seungyoun had a complicated past and often told Wooseok that he didn’t want to settle in with anyone unless all this madness was over. ‘I don’t want to lose more people.’ he had muttered, and Wooseok understood but he still pitied poor Hangyul.

His eyes kept scanning the room in search of the person he was worried about the most… and he found him right at the corner, a little away from the others. Eyes red and drained from all emotion. Yunseong was pale as a sheet and was staring directly at the floor. Wooseok wondered what exactly was the other boy thinking about. He would have to have a talk with him later. It was dangerous to leave him alone with his own thoughts.

The silence was suffocating and Wooseok wondered why Seungyoun hadn’t started the meeting yet. He quickly counted everyone present and finally noticed that Minhee wasn’t there yet. Wooseok wanted to ask but he didn’t dare to break the silence. Just as he was pondering about that, he heard the door behind him.

The raven haired boy entered and all eyes fell on him, except for Yunseong’s, who kept staring at the floor. But ironically, Minhee’s irises focused only on him. Wooseok liked to think of himself as an observant person. He could get hints in the little things everyone else just ignored but he just kept all that information to himself. Like the way Donghyun’s eyes would sparkle each time he mentioned Yunseong, how Yunseong’s cheeks tainted the faintest shade of pink when Donghyun acted cute ,the smile full of pain Minhee wore whenever he saw them, and Jungmo’s shoulder drop when Minhee stopped listening to him to focus on the other pair.

Minhee stood next to Junho, who was the one closest to Yunseong. Wooseok saw him fidgeting and stealing glances at the other boy until he finally decided to settle down. 

If Seungyoun was bothered by Minhee’s tardiness, he didn’t mention it and simply cleared his throat to gain the attention of the rest of the people gathered there and decided to start the meeting. 

“Let’s not beat around the bush. We locked the creature in one of the solitary confinement rooms. It shall be asleep for another hour but we never know with these things.” Wooseok could see that some of the others were bothered by Seungyoun referring to someone who used to be their friend and companion as ‘creature’. But he couldn’t blame him. Seungyoun was a survivor and the only way to keep surviving was leaving your feelings aside in matters like these. “I’m not gonna ask any of you to do it… but, without a doubt, that thing must be killed.”

Nobody dared to say a word, the only thing that could be heard were muffled sniffs and whimpers, mainly coming from the younger ones in the group. He was surprised to see Yunseong hadn’t moved an inch, eyes still glued to the ground. What could he be thinking about?

Contrary to Hangyul and Seungyoun, Donghyun and Yunseong hadn’t hidden their affections for each other. They had made it official quite recently but they had been pining for a while. Wooseok watched it all unfold. How they held hands under the table when they thought nobody was watching them, how Yunseong eyes lingered a little too long on Donghyun whenever he entered the room, the gentle way Donghyun played with the other boy’s hair when they were watching the rest play cards or a sport… To be honest, all of them had seen it coming but nobody could have predicted their tragic end. Donghyun was to be killed… and nobody could oppose it because it was the best for all of them. He wanted to scream.

“Does everyone agree?” It was a courtesy question. Seungyoun knew that nobody would go against it. Someone muttered a quiet “yes” and the rest followed, some of them only nodded. Jinhyuk was standing still next to Wooseok, keeping his distance from the circle as if he was some outsider. The boy felt bad for the taller man and grabbed his arm to pull him forward. Jinhyuk seemed uncomfortable but he didn’t refuse. 

“Okay, then it’s settled.” Seungyoun sighed. Behind his cool demeanour, Wooseok knew that Seungyoun was also deeply affected as the rest of them. Before he could go on with the meeting, Yunseong quietly raised his hand and all eyes stopped at him. He finally looked up towards the man who was leading the meeting, waiting to be acknowledged.

Seungyoun seemed startled for a second but gave Yunseong a nod, signaling him to speak.

“I want to be the one who kills... the infected.” his voice was trembling. He looked as if he would start bawling at any moment but he was also doing his best to stand his ground. Wooseok also noticed that the boy had refrained from using Donghyun’s name. Maybe it would hurt a little less if he detached any memory of his lover from the thing that had been trying to hunt them.

Minhee seemed to have finally found his voice because he was the first one who opposed. “I’m sorry but I don’t think that’s wise.” He looked at every face in the room, waiting for someone to back him up but the rest were silent. Wooseok also wanted to intervene but deep down he knew he would do the same if he were in Yunseong’s shoes. Even in Donghyun’s final moments, he wanted to be with him.

Seungyoun squinted his eyes and stared at Yunseong almost without blinking. This time, instead of looking down, Yunseong kept his head held high while returning Seungyoun’s gaze. A few seconds passed until Seungyoun nodded. “Alright… something tells me I won’t be able to talk you out of it anyways… but I’ll go with you, just in case.”

Yunseong didn’t say anything, he didn’t even nod but maybe he knew he couldn’t refuse. It was dangerous to go alone anyways.

“Well, one matter is settled.” The co leader sighed and spoke to the others once again. “Me and Wooseok brought some food and medicine from the outside. It’s all in the car, so Wonjin, Hyeongjun and Minkyu can go get that tomorrow morining. “ Wooseok saw him looking for someone in the crowd and finally found that person next to Wooseok. He wanted to introduce Jinhyuk to the rest of the group. “We also found another survivor. Most of you already know but let’s try to be formal for once.” He made a signal to Jinhyuk and the tall man seemed lost. Wooseok nudged him with his elbow and he seemed to finally take the hint and bowed.

“I’m Lee Jinhyuk. Nice to meet you.” You didn’t have to be a genius to notice that Jinhyuk was tense. Wooseok felt bad for him; Seungyoun didn’t need to put him in the spotlight like that. Mainly the younger ones returned the bow and the rest just nodded in his direction. Surely they were curious but they were also drained and depressed after all that had happened that day. Seungyoun didn’t ignore that and spoke up once again.

“Today’s been a rough day… We lost two of our companions and all of you might be shocked. Don’t hesitate to ask for help if you need it and remember we are a family and we will get through this together.” He looked at each one of them. Wooseok noticed that he didn’t even bother to ignore Hangyul this time.

“I’ll take care of Tony and the creature...” It was highly impossible that they would hold a funeral or anything for Tony. His body was almost unrecognizable after Donghyun attacked him and the rest didn’t need to be reminded of that. He guessed Seungyoun would probably burn the remains. No use in keeping something that could attract infected creatures in there. “It’s getting late already… I suggest you all go to bed right now, tomorrow we’ll-”

Before he could go on, Yuvin stepped in front of the circle, gaining all the attention in the room. This time, it was hard for Wooseok to read him. A frown was plastered on his face but he was also shaking slightly. He was angry but also afraid.  _ Yuvin knows.  _ Wooseok trembled a little while he waited for the man to speak. He knew this was coming, he should have been more prepared. “Don’t give us that bullshit. How are we supposed to sleep?” His voice kept rising with each sentence. “How do you know there’s not another creature looming around here?” He turned towards the others, desperation clear on his face. “Aren’t any of you wondering how the hell did Donghyun get bitten?” Desperation turned to rage when he spat a last phrase that left almost everyone shocked and with disbelieving faces. 

“When were you planning to tell us that you were keeping infected creatures down in the solitary confinement aisle?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have a weird fixation with cliffhangers hehe... Also I feel as if I'm only giving you more questions and barely any answer hahahaha. It will all be explained when the moment comes.  
Feel free to visit me on twitter (@wblobfishbells) and leave your predictions in the comments!


	7. Scars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi!~ I apologize in advance for all the cliff hangers but am I gonna stop? NO.  
Hope you enjoy this chapter! I'm starting to reveal new things little by little so just have a little more patience!   
As always, thanks for reading and supporting this story ♥ Please don't be silent readers and leave a comment! Thanks~

The room became silent after Yuvin’s accusation. Everyone’s stares moved towards Seungyoun who was the one Yuvin had directed his words at. Wooseok wondered if he should move forward and speak but his feet were stuck to the ground. Why wasn’t Seungwoo here? He was the one who could calm the waters in time like this.

The co-leader stood there in silence but a somber expression loomed above his face. Even poor Yunseong had lifted his face to look at Seungyoun. 

Hyeongjun was the first one who broke the silence. “That can’t be… right, Seungyoun? Why would you all put us at risk like that?” His lips were trembling as he spoke. Wooseok felt ten times worse. All this was supposed to be kept a secret. This is exactly what he wanted to prevent.

“It’s pointless to lie about it. I saw it with my own eyes,” added Yuvin. The group’s attention turned towards him. Some urged him to continue but others looked like they would rather not know anything about the issue. They didn’t want to believe it. “After we all evacuated the building, Seungwoo went upstairs and he was carrying a gun. He didn’t notice me but I followed him because I thought he was planning to take on Donghyun alone. However, he took a detour towards the solitary confinement aisle and I heard them… I’m not sure how many they were, maybe three or four but I heard the shots. Seungwoo had gone there to kill them… because he knew that they were probably the cause of Donghyun’s transformation. And if Seungwoo knew about it, there’s no way his second in command wouldn’t… Right, Seungyoun?”

“Seungwoo had already warned that section was off-limits. This wasn’t supposed to happen.” A new voice made its way towards the chaos. It was Hangyul’s.

“You knew about it?!” Wonjin quickly interjected while looking at Hangyul in disbelief.

Hangyul could only nod nervously and everyone became more agitated by the second. Yuvin raised his voice once again. “Who else knew about it? Did you all just keep it a secret from the rest of us? And what was the purpose of that? I swear I’m trying to come up with a reasonable explanation but I can’t think of anything.” 

Wooseok couldn’t take it any longer and moved forward. “It’s my fault. I asked them to bring the infected here.”

All eyes were suddenly on him. He could even see how Jinhyuk’s eyes were as surprised as the rest. He wanted to make things right but he knew that after this, it would take a while to get everyone’s trust in him once again.

“What did you just say?” This time, the person who spoke startled Wooseok. Yunseong was looking at him with a frown.

Wooseok was shaking. He wasn’t planning on having this conversation ever. It had taken a while to make Seungwoo and Seungyoun agree with his idea but he had promised not to make a mess or create panic. But it had all gone wrong.

Still, some other questions haunted Wooseok. Why was Donghyun there? Was he there alone? Had he found out and gone on his own? He looked at Yunseong but on his irises, there was only pain and anger. Wooseok had to shift his gaze in shame. This time, he fixed his sight on Minhee. It was just one second but a look of guilt flashed on the younger’s face.

“Why the hell did you do that, Wooseok?” Yuvin continued with anger in his voice.

He would have appreciated that Jinhyuk took his hand and calmed him like he always did but he knew he didn’t deserve it. “The idea was to study them and find the best way to go against them. I wanted to learn the limits of their abilities… and I did find some useful information. I just… wanted to help.”

“Well, Tony’s dead, and Donghyun is even worse. It doesn’t look like you helped anybody.” Yuvin continued with his attack. Wooseok felt a pang in his chest after what the other had said. But Yuvin was right… His curiosity had gotten the best of him and he had put the entire group in danger… What’s worse, he had dragged other people in and the web of lies had kept growing.

“Seungwoo and I knew the risks when Wooseok suggested it. Don’t put all the blame on him.” Seungyoun finally spoke up. Wooseok shook his head towards him. He didn’t want the others to cover for him. He would face the consequences of his mistakes.

“And what… did you find out?” A timid voice made its way through the rest. Minkyu was looking at Wooseok attentively. The boy had never been comfortable with confrontation. Wooseok silently thanked the younger for giving him the chance to explain himself. He still felt he didn’t deserve it but he didn’t want to let them down anymore. He would do anything in his power to help them survive.

All eyes were on him once again. Seungyoun nodded at him as if giving him his permission to disclose the information they had collected so far. “Just like humans who debilitate themselves when they don’t eat, the infected follow the same pattern. If they don’t eat for a prolonged time, they will die because of malnourishment.”

“It’s just as simple as that?” Jungo wondered allowed. Wooseok understood that I must have been hard to believe considering that they had been fighting with the infection for at least a year.

“Of course it takes longer for them to deplete their energy. According to my observations, they can go at least five months without feeding…” No one tried to interrupt him this time. He knew that they were still mad at him but there were also some of the survivors who were interested in what he had to say. They needed to work together if they wanted to keep on living. “During the last month, they go feral over food so they just start attacking whatever they see moving. Throughout this period, the infected won’t be satisfied only with a bite, they would consume the body of their victim entirely.” He shivered at the thought… It was exactly what had happened to Tony.

He bit his lips and tried to control his emotions but it was hard. He couldn’t shake the thought that he was partly at fault for Tony’s death. 

“So what now? We have waited for a year already. Why didn’t this end sooner?” Sejin wondered aloud. Wooseok was about to get there.

“That’s because their population increased with each wave of infected people. According to what I have observed… We are currently going through the end of the third wave of Infected and entering the fourth and presumably the last.”

Some brows arched in confusion while others were raised in understanding.

“So we just have to stay alive for five more months…” Whispered someone in the crowd. Wooseok was not sure who had muttered those words but they were right. He nodded in agreement and looked towards the floor. There was nothing left for him to say. 

Everybody started talking among themselves in hushed voices, assessing the new information they had obtained. Yunseong’s eyes never left Wooseok and he finally decided to speak after a while.

“It might have been nice to know this before all this shit happened.” There was venom in his voice.

Wooseok knew that he had been reckless and an idiot. He didn’t intend for anything to happen but he should have been more careful. He shouldn’t have gone on an expedition that day, he shouldn’t have taken a detour to the hospital… If they had arrived faster… could the tragedy have been avoided? The boy knew that question would haunt him forever.

Some of them nodded in agreement, some of the others looked at Wooseok with pity in their eyes. The air was tense and the group was divided… and it had all been his fault.

“As Yuvin said…” Seungyoun began speaking once again. “They have been taken care of. The only creature currently in one of the solitary confinement rooms is the one that we captured recently.” 

“Don’t call him that. His name is Donghyun and he deserves to be remembered by each one of us.” Yunseong said aloud, trying to make his way to Seungyoun. Luckily, Junho stopped him before things escalated.

Seungyoun simply ignored him and continued talking. “Yunseong and I will go take care of that now. Hangyul and Wooseok are in charge of Tony.” Of cremating him, Wooseok thought. However, there was something else he had to do so he will have to decline. “The rest should go to sleep. We’ll bring in the supplies tomorrow.” 

Nobody had the energy to argue anymore but the tension could still be felt within the group. One by one, they all started scattering towards their rooms. The ones that remained there were Seungyoun, Yunseong, Hangyul, Wooseok, and Jinhyuk. Minhee had asked to stay but Jungmo took him by the arm and shook his head, leading him outside of the gym. He was acting weird, Wooseok thought. He would have to talk with him later.

Seungyoun directed towards the door and looked behind to see if Yunseong was following him. “Let’s go,” he said and Yunseong silently followed him with a somber expression. Wooseok wanted to pat him on the back or something but he was in no position to give him strength.

Hangyul sighed loudly after the pair left and gave both Wooseok and Jinhyuk a weak smile. “You have somewhere else to be, right?” He put a hand on Wooseok’s shoulder. “Just go, I’ll be fine on my own.” Wooseok thanked him and nodded slightly.

He turned around to make his way towards the door and Jinhyuk was right there looking at him. The tall man’s feelings were hard to decode. Would he also be mad at Wooseok for putting his brother’s life at risk? 

He looked away, afraid of what he could find in the other boy's eyes, and continued walking to the door. 

Before he could leave, Hangyul called his name. "Don't beat yourself up. It's not your fault." Wooseok appreciated his friend's words and nodded but that didn’t mean that he agreed.

Without a word, Jinhyuk started following Wooseok from behind. Wooseok wanted to ask him so many things but he was still ashamed. That hadn’t been exactly the kind of welcome he was expecting for Jinhyuk. He felt bad for the tall man. Perhaps he should keep his distance. It wouldn’t do Jinhyuk any good to keep mingling with Wooseok during this situation.

After a few minutes of walking, Wooseok decided to break the silence. “I’ll ask Seungwoo to show you a room.”

“I don’t plan on sleeping anywhere far from Jinwoo.” the man answered. “If he’s staying in the medical room, I’ll stay there as well.

Jinhyuk couldn’t see him but Wooseok smiled weakly. He had expected that exact answer from him. “There’s no need. I’ll stay with him tonight. You should rest…” He turned around and looked at the taller male’s face and then diverted his eyes towards the bandage on his leg. “You had a rough day.”

The other boy walked forward and stood right in front of Wooseok. The smaller one was still looking down to his leg so Jinhyuk placed his fingers on Wooseok’s chin and lifted it upwards so that they were facing each other. “Something tells me both of us will have trouble sleeping tonight.” After that, Jinhyuk’s thumb traveled to Wooseok’s cheek and rubbed a spot there. Wooseok didn’t notice it but he had started crying.

He tried to do his best to stop the tears from falling but the more he fought, the more they wanted to come out. He was fed up with pretending to be strong. He was tired, frustrated, scared… He wanted to scream and punch a wall. Donghyun, poor innocent Donghyun, was now a hideous creature because of him. And even worse than that, he had killed Tony. The rest of them were mad at him and Wooseok couldn’t blame them.

Suddenly, a pair of arms embraced him and he felt like a little kid again. It had been so long since he had last let his emotions flow freely like that. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had cried. Jinhyuk pulled him closer to his chest and didn’t say anything, he only rubbed his back and his hair while Wooseok kept crying. Maybe not everyone had turned their back on him.

____________

The way to the solitary confinement aisle was silent. Seungyoun was pretty sure Yunseong wouldn’t want to answer if he spoke to him so he kept his mouth shut.

Yunseong was still carrying the gun he had when they had encountered Donghyun in the cafeteria. Seungyoun wondered what had changed in the other boy to make him suggest killing the creature himself. A few hours ago he had prevented him from doing so. In any case, he was kind of glad that Yunseong was deciding to leave his emotions aside.

Once they were in front of the door, Seungyoun heard Yunseong take a deep breath. Maybe this was too much to ask of him. 

“Hey, Yunseong… You don’t have to go through this. I can do it if-”

“I’ll do it,” Yunseong answered with a steady voice. Seungyoun was kind of impressed.

But before Seungyoun could push the door open, Yunseong put a hand on his arm to stop him. “I’d prefer to do this alone… I need… to say a proper goodbye.”

Seungyoun bit his tongue. He didn’t want to lash out at the other boy, especially not when he was in that state. But Yunseong had to understand that the sooner he accepted that the creature they had locked in was no longer his lover but a completely different, more sinister thing, the sooner he would be able to heal.

He decided to let him be for the time being. After all, this would be the last time he would catch a glance of what once was Donghyun. So he nodded and opened the door. “The creature is in the second room. Just shoot at it and be over with it. I advise you to take more than one shot, just in case.” The other boy hummed in agreement and took a step forward. “If you don’t come out in ten minutes, I’m coming to fetch you.”

Yunseong didn’t turn around after the warning and just kept walking, closing the door behind him. Seungyoun crossed his arms in front of his chest and closed his eyes. The corridor was silent since this was the most isolated part of the whole facility. No one had dared to come here alone, especially not after Seungwoo had warned that this section was off-limits. Then what was Donghyun doing here? Had no one noticed that Donghyun had trespassed this area? Why had he come here alone? Those and many more were the questions that kept lingering on his head.

His thoughts halted when he heard a shot coming from the other room. 

Yunseong had done it. 

After the shot, there was silence. Seungyoun wondered if he should enter but finally decided against it. Yunseong needed this time on his own. So he waited… and after a minute or two, he heard three more shots. ‘At least he took my advice.’

A few moments later, the door finally opened revealing an emotionless Yunseong. Seungyoun thought the boy would be at least a little emotionally shaken but he looked better than what he had expected. A certain respect for the other boy appeared on his chest. He knew it wasn’t easy and it was something that would follow him forever but that same pain will help him grow and move forward.

Seungyoun patted Yunseong on the back but the other boy quickly slapped his hand away. He frowned but didn’t say anything. Yunseong needed time and space and he would give him all that.

The way back to the cells was the same as their first walk. Silent. 

Once they reached Yunseong cell, the boy entered without even saying goodbye and closed the gate. There was something kind of eerie in the way they had to sleep in cells as if they were prisoners but they had agreed that it was a necessary precaution. They thought that if an Infected entered during the night, it wouldn’t be able to take a grip on them because of the bars. Of course, every cell was equipped with some kind of weapon so that they could fight the creature from the inside. Luckily, it had never happened but after the events of that day, Seungyoun was sure everyone would keep their weapons close and their cells closed tight.

_________

Jinhyuk and Wooseok were currently in front of the medical room. Everyone else had already moved upstairs but apparently, Seungwoo had decided to stay in the underground medical room so as not to worsen Jinwoo’s state. The door was locked from the inside, signaling that Seungwoo was still treating Jinwoo inside. 

The tall boy glanced towards Wooseok. He seemed to have calmed down after all that crying but his eyes were still puffy. After the embrace was broken, Wooseok had turned around and continued walking without even looking in his direction. Jinhyuk assumed that the other boy was embarrassed. He hoped that they could talk about what had happened. There were many things that Jinhyuk was still not familiar with or that he couldn’t completely grasp but what he understood was that Wooseok was in pain and he didn’t like that.

They just stood there waiting without uttering a word until the door opened and revealed Seungwoo. Both of the boys who had been waiting outside quickly approached the young doctor with worry painted on their faces.

Seungwoo looked at them and smiled reassuringly. “He’s gonna be okay.” The two boys sighed in relief and Seungwoo just laughed after witnessing that. “Normally I would advise you to go and let Jinwoo rest but I know you’re just going to ignore whatever I tell you. Just be careful and try to not make much noise.” He let the door open so both of them could enter the room.

Jinwoo was laying in the bed at the center of the room. Both Wooseok and Jinhyun rushed to his side. Jinhyuk sat on a chair on the left of the bed while Wooseok climbed the bed next to Jinwoo’s and sat there. Seungwoo gave them a few more indications just in case anything happened. “If you need me, I’ll be in the room next door.”

Both boys nodded without tearing his eyes away from the boy in the bed. None of them noticed when Seungwoo left the room.

A little of color had returned to his brother’s face which made Jinhyuk relieved. He just hoped everything would be alright once he woke up. He was itching to hold Jinwoo’s hand, to make sure he was still real but he fought against the thought, he didn’t want to disturb the boy’s sleep.

When he looked at Wooseok, it was plain to see that he was having the same thoughts as Jinhyuk since he kept looking at Jinwoo’s hand with a lost expression.

“Thank you for taking care of Jinwoo all this time.” Jinhyuk finally decided to break the silence. Whatever Wooseok was thinking about was clearly affecting him so Jinhyuk wanted to take his mind off all those thoughts at least for a moment.

Wooseok directed his eyes towards Jinhyuk and frowned. Okay, that’s not the response he was expecting. He was about to ask what was wrong but Wooseok beat him.

“Aren’t you mad at me?” Wooseok kept frowning. Jinhyuk blinked in confusion and Wooseok made an exasperated sound. “I made a stupid decision and lied to everyone. I put them at risk, Jinwoo included… It’s all my fault.”

Jinhyuk stood up and made his way towards Wooseok. He sat next to the short boy on the bed and put a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t be too hard on yourself. We all make mistakes and honestly… I’ve been keeping secrets from you as well.” He shot a look towards his covered leg.

As opposed to his first reaction to learning that Jinhyuk was immune, Wooseok seemed calmer this time. A whole day had almost passed and there were still no signs of Jinhyuk converting. He guessed he had earned the smaller boy’s trust by now.

The boy stood up from the bed and opened a cabinet on the opposite wall. He took out a box from there and after closer inspection, Jinhyuk guessed it was a first aid box. Then, he sat down at the edge of the bed and signaled Jinhyuk to show him his leg. The tall man complied and took off the bandage. The wound seemed less swollen than before but it hadn’t closed entirely. The younger boy opened the box, took out the gauze, and applied a liquid on it. The boy seemed to know what he was doing so Jinhyuk wasn’t nervous at all.

“I don’t hate you.” Jinhyuk felt that he needed to make that clear, just in case. Wooseok stopped his ministrations when he heard his voice and Jinhyuk was afraid that he would start crying again so he grabbed the other boy’s chin with his fingers and made him look up.

Getting lost in the younger’s eyes was not on Jinhyuk’s plans. 

Contrary to what he had thought, Wooseok was not crying but there was something on those eyes that pulled him in. They seemed to be asking for help, for someone who would support him. Could Jinhyuk be that person? Or was he just as desperate as Wooseok? How could he even think of healing others when he was still being tormented by the secrets he kept?

He was about to release Wooseok’s chin but the boy grabbed him by the wrist. Their eyes never left each other. “Thank you.” muttered the younger quietly and dropped his hold on Jinhyuk. After that, he kept treating the wound in front of him but he seemed calmer this time. Jinhyuk was relieved. Maybe he didn’t have to do much for now… just be there for the other boy. He would figure out the rest later.

However, honesty was the first step. “I guess it’s my turn to start revealing my secrets before you hate me.” Jinhyuk assessed Wooseok’s reaction but the other boy just kept working in silence. He had already cleared the wound and was now applying a new bandage.

“I… was the test subject for the vaccine prototype for the virus.” This time Wooseok looked up immediately after listening to the statement. His big eyes looked even wider and they were filled with questions. However, the boy didn’t say anything and just waited for Jinhyuk to continue.

Jinhyuk was not sure how to go on. He would have to reveal important details from his past and he didn’t know if he was prepared to talk about that. Jinwoo was also right beside them and, though it was improbable, he could wake up at any moment. He decided to leave the details out but Jinhyuk was scared of Wooseok’s curiosity. 

“That’s why I’m immune…” he took a deep breath. “I wasn’t sure that it would really work until I was bitten after I left Jinwoo at the train station.” He remembered that day vividly and all the trauma it had come with it.

_ After the train had left, Jinhyuk was exiting the station when an alarm rang, and then chaos ensued. People started running but nobody really knew where to go; not until the first infected creatures appeared. They came through the big station door, a swarm of them, and started biting and attacking everyone in their way. Their numbers spread quickly as people lying on the ground started to rise, now infected. Panic had consumed him and in an act of desperation, he hid in one of the bathroom stalls… He was locked there for five days. _

_ He remembered the desperation he felt at that moment. How he would barely make a sound in fear that a creature might be lurking out there, how he would go out and sneak out to one of the sinks to drink some water and then lock himself in the stall again, how he had to stop his stomach from grumbling in hunger and how he was certain that no matter what he did, he would die anyway. _

_ After five days, he finally had enough and decided to go out. If he was going to die either way, might as well not prologue it anymore. _

_ However, his will to live would not die so easily so he was extra careful. He looked through the keyhole of the bathroom door, just to make sure the coast was clear. It all looked pretty desolated but he could hear some weak noises in the distance.  _

_ He swallowed hard and said a little prayer. His mother always told him that he should always pray and thank the Lord for another day of being alive but Jinhyuk had never paid much attention to her words. Just like his father, he had always been a man of science. It was amazing how, in moments of desperation, one could easily rely on a man who lived in the sky and believe that everything would turn out alright. He wished he had that ability because after saying his prayers, he felt absolutely no reassurance. Maybe this was his punishment for not being a believer. _

_ Without giving it another thought, Jinhyuk opened the door and started making his way through the station. There was a horrendous smell in the air, coming from the bodies decomposing on the floor. Jinhyuk fought the urge to throw up; if he made a sound, he would be done for. _

_ While he held his breath, he tried to take off the shirt of one of the bodies on the floor. The people who were lying there were hardly recognizable. Many of their bones were out in the open and their heads were nowhere to be found. Tears started forming in Jinhyuk’s eyes. Why was all this happening? _

_ Once he had retrieved the shirt, he took out his jacket and put the shirt on… He hoped that the smell confused the creatures if there were any roaming through the building. With long steps, he tried to get as close as possible to the front gate. _

_ The moment he took a look outside, his blood froze. Everything was in chaos. There were cars catching fire on the street, bodies sprawled all over the floor, and random creatures feeding themselves over them. He swallowed his vomit once more. The idea of being careful left his mind and he started running. Going through the street was not a safe idea so he just entered a random alley and started climbing the fire escape ladders.  _

_ As he was climbing he heard several noises approaching. The infected had discovered him already. He felt as if he would faint at any moment but he pushed his body to the limit until he reached the roof. The view was even worse from up there. Normal citizens had been replaced by infected creatures. All the windows were closed and locked. ‘Some people might be locking themselves in their own homes’ Jinhyuk thought. He thought about asking for a refugee in one of the buildings but nobody would open the door or window for him. It was just too dangerous. _

_ He just hoped Jinwoo was alright and the infected hadn’t got to the trains…  _

_ Jinhyuk shook his head in an attempt to forget about all that and kept going. He jumped over all the roofs he could find until he got close to his house. He was overly exhausted and hungry but he needed to survive. _

_ Once he was close to his neighbourhood, he climbed down the stairs and started running again. There was no time to lose.  _

_ He made it to his front yard in record time. Hiding behind cars and under stairs. This area had fewer creatures than the center but they were still roaming here and there. _

_ Jinhyuk started patting the grass desperately until he felt the handle of the underground bunker. He sighed in relief while he opened it and was about to enter when he heard a screech right behind him. _

_ The infected didn’t give him any time to think. It ran to Jinhyuk with full force and knocked him to the ground, only to just dig his teeth in Jinhyuk’s arm. Right before it could do anything else, he heard a scream near them. In the door frame separating the garden from the house stood his mother… Her eyes seemed determined. She took one last glance at her eldest son before running into the house with the infected creature following her. Jinhyuk couldn’t speak, his throat felt dry and his eyes started watering uncontrollably. _

_ His mother had decided to sacrifice herself and for what? He was about to become one of those filthy creatures anyway. But he refused to attack anyone or let anyone suffer because of him so, with the last bit of strength he had left, he let himself fall into the bunker and closed the door.  _

_ He felt so tired afterward that he remained there on the floor and waited until he became one of those things he had grown to hate. But… to his surprise, he woke up as himself several hours later. _

“That’s how I knew the vaccine had worked… We never got to run tests after they injected me with it.” He looked away but Wooseok seemed to have understood. They never got to run tests because the disease spread first.

The smaller appeared to be deep in thought after Jihyuk’s story. “Can I ask you something?”

Jinhyuk nodded, he didn’t trust his voice. 

“Why wasn’t your mother in the bunker?” 

“She had claustrophobia.” He clenched his fists over the sheets. Up until this day he still wondered if there could have been a way to save her. “The moment the madness started I wanted to seclude us three inside the bunker.” He looked at his little brother who was steadily breathing in the bed. “But she refused to go in. It was dangerous for us to be in the house so in order to keep Jinwoo safe, I sent him away.” Jinhyuk never knew if he had made the right decision. Maybe if he had done things differently, the three of them would still be together.

His clenched fist was covered then by another, gentler hand. “You did what you thought was right… None of you could have known what the future held.” He gestured to Jinwoo’s sleeping form. “And you’re with him now, aren’t you?”

“How do you always know exactly what to say?” Jinhyuk hadn’t planned to say that line out loud but his brain betrayed him. Their eyes met each other and slowly, his fist unclenched and his fingers intertwined with Wooseok’s. 

The boy in front of him didn't answer his question but kept staring at him. There was a glint of something in his eyes, curiosity? desire? Subtly and without noticing it at first, Jinhyuk started leaning forward until their foreheads were barely touching. He then remembered their first meeting and the kiss they both shared. How would a second one feel? He waited for some kind of signal from the smaller boy and he thought he had found it when Wooseok fluttered his eyes closed. 

But before he could do anything, the sound of the door opening broke the spell they both were in. The two boys separated quickly and looked at the unexpected visitor.

Jinhyuk was not sure he remembered all of the names yet but he could recall that this guy was the one that said he would kill the infected that had been captured earlier.

"Yunseong," said Wooseok with a worried expression. He quickly got up and went towards the other boy but he simply ignored him and moved towards one of the cabinets. "What do you need? Did something happen?"

The Yunseong guy closed the cabinet pretty loudly and turned around to meet Wooseok's face. Jinhyuk didn't like the expression this boy was showing. "Leave me alone." He said and shoved Wooseok out of the way. Without another word or even acknowledging the other people in the room, he left. Jinhyuk got to see that he had taken a first aid kit.

“What’s his problem?” said Jinhyuk, visibly annoyed by the way this boy had treated Wooseok. He had seemed really quiet during the meeting. He wondered if it was the first time this person had to kill an infected; maybe that was the reason why he looked so shook up.

“He and Donghyun were kind of a thing…” 

Oh.

So not only did he have to kill an infected creature but also the person he used to go out with. No wonder he had seemed one of the most annoyed with Wooseok’s revelation.

“And I ruined it for them…” Now it was Wooseok’s turn to clench his fists. Jinhyuk quickly stood up and ran to his side. He was worried about the smaller boy crying again but when Jinhyuk was close enough, there were no tears. But his eyes looked sad nevertheless.

The tall man tried putting a hand on the other’s shoulder “Wooseok, it’s not your f-”

“Stop saying that. You don’t know anything.” Before he could reach him, Wooseok flinched away from him. He made his way to the chair next to Jinwoo and closed his eyes. It was a clear enough sign that he didn’t want to be bothered.

Even though his words had hurt a little, Jinhyuk decided to give him space. They could discuss it some other time.

Jinhyuk patted his little brother’s hand before sitting on the bed once again. He wasn’t sleepy so he decided to just watch over Jinwoo and Wooseok. Maybe he was scared that it was all a dream and once he woke up, he would be alone in the bunker again.

____________

The next day, Seungwoo woke Wooseok and Jinhyuk up and insisted that both of them should have some breakfast. It was evident that Wooseok didn’t want to go to the cafeteria but Seungwoo was persistent. He even threatened them saying he wouldn’t let them watch over Jinwoo anymore if they didn’t get something to eat. The little boy was still sleeping but luckily, his face was starting to look better already so at least something was going right for once.

Wooseok dragged his feet to the cafeteria and once he arrived, the atmosphere was exactly as he had predicted. Awkward and tense.

Everyone turned their heads once they entered the room. They looked at Wooseok and Seungwoo with weary eyes while they glanced at Jinhyuk with curiosity but none of them dared to speak. 

Wooseok looked for Seungyoun and Hangyul but they didn’t seem to be in the cafeteria. Minkyu looked at him with a sympathetic smile and gestured towards his table, which was being shared by Hyeongjun and Wonjin but Wooseok shook his head and directed himself to an unoccupied table. He didn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable.

Jinhyuk and Seungwoo followed him and the three of them sat together. Seungwoo explained that Sejin and Junho were on breakfast duty today so surely the food would be tasty. The leader signaled them to stay seated while he went to fetch them some food.

Suddenly, Yuvin rose from his seat and called out Seungwoo’s name. The man turned around and returned Yuvin’s gaze. Wooseok was jealous of Seungwoo’s ability to keep his face neutral. He would have been sweating nervously. Just like the day before.

“You weren’t at the meeting yesterday but I’m pretty sure you already know what happened.” 

Their leader quietly nodded and waited for Yuvin to go on. 

“I think we all here deserve an apology.” He signaled to everyone around him. Some averted their eyes, others looked at Seungwoo with a pained expression. Yohan, who was seated right next to Yuvin, was tugging his shirt, begging him to calm down and just sit down. But the boy didn’t pay attention and went on. “You authorized it and were not honest with us… and now look what happened…”

Wooseok could see how Seungwoo took a deep breath before saying anything. Their leader was not a man of many words and he only said exactly what was needed, but whatever he said, he was always sincere.

“You’re absolutely right.” At that, Yuvin seemed a bit lost. He was definitely expecting some kind of explanation or defense but Seungwoo was not like that. He accepted his mistakes and he always tried to learn from them. It was no coincidence that he had been appointed leader and they had survived for so long with his leadership.

The man looked around the room and stared at everyone’s eyes, each of them. Even Jinhyuk’s, who was still new but Seungwoo had already accepted him as part of their community. “I believed I was doing the right thing and I didn’t take all the risks into account. So for that, I deeply apologize to you all.” He made a bow and stood there for a while, trying to show his sincerity through his actions. “I know this is not something that can be fixed with just an apology. We lost two important people yesterday.” He didn’t rise from his position while he kept talking. “I just want to ask you to not be too hard on Wooseok or Seungyoun. After all, I am the leader and I was the one who allowed the creatures being kept here.”

Wooseok was about to rise in protest but someone else beat him. And he hadn’t expected it at all. 

“It’s not your fault.” 

Minhee rapidly rose from his seat and mouthed those words. Everyone looked at him in surprise. After noticing that they were all staring at him, he rapidly sat down and covered his face in embarrassment. Even though everybody was confused about Minhee’s sudden interjection, they didn’t comment on it and ignored it… but Wooseok squinted his eyes towards the little boy. Minhee had been acting strange since the previous day.

The cafeteria turned silent and before anyone else could go on talking, a figure entered the room. The man of the hour. Yunseong.

From the moment he entered, everyone looked at him with pity in their eyes. He was surely the one who was having the roughest time. Minhee lifted from his seat quickly and got to his side but Yunseong seemed to be ignoring everything around him. Wooseok thought that Minhee was lucky that he hadn’t lashed out the way he had done the day before.

Once Yunseong grabbed the food, he made a motion to leave the room. Minhee grabbed him by the arm and suggested they sat and ate together. Yunseong turned to him, his face was void of any emotion. “Let me go.” It was quiet but Wooseok could hear it. He guessed everyone could hear it because it looked like the moment Yunseong entered the room, all of them had forgotten how to breathe.

But Minhee was not going to give up that easily. He refused to release his hold on Yunsong and shook his head. "It's better if we eat together."

This time, Yunseong turned around and faced the other boy with a dark expression. "Don't you get it?" He grabbed Minhee's wrist and harshly dropped it to the side. "I want to be alone." 

Jungmo had stood up in case Yunseong got more violent but after saying those words he dashed out of the cafeteria. 

Minhee just stood there and looked at the door longingly. In the blink of an eye, Jungmo was next to him. He put a hand on the raven-haired boy's back and whispered something to him. Minhee just nodded and went back to his seat bearing a dejected expression. Wooseok felt bad for him but Yunseong needed time. Being a pushover would only worsen the other boy's mood.

Nobody had the energy to argue after the scene they had just witnessed. Silently, each one of them realized that they all had to give their part to make it alright again… for Yunseong and also for all of them. 

In a clear attempt to ease the tension, Seungwoo signaled to the table where Jinhyuk and Wooseok were seated. "I believe our new friend here has to introduce himself."

Wooseok could see how Jinhyuk gulped. He was fairly amused.

_______

Hangyul was inspecting the scratch on his arm. It hadn't been that serious but a simple thing like an infection could get them in trouble. Good thing Wooseok and the rest had brought some medical supplies but still, better safe than sorry.

There was another reason why he had secluded himself in one of the storage rooms and it was that he didn't want to run into Seungyoun.

He had indeed taken his side the previous day but that didn't mean things would suddenly become less awkward between them. 

Maybe Hangyul was being petty but Seungyoun had to stop treating him like a child. He and Wooseok had gone through a lot of missions together with no problems but after only one slip, Seungyoun had had the nerve to ban him from future outings. 

Hangyul had never been cut out for housework. He couldn't cook, clean, or keep things stored and checked as the others. Maybe it was because he used to do extreme sports back in the day so he had always been a man of adventure. Seungyoun taking away his freedom had felt like a betrayal. Especially coming from him.

_ “You’re unreliable.”  _ The older had said with an annoyed expression and it hurt Hangyul to no end. It was the same as telling him he was useless. And he felt that way now. 

A voice pulled him away from his thoughts. It was the voice of the person he least wanted to see or see right now. “You should stop hiding and go eat something.” Hangyul rolled his eyes and looked around, refusing to acknowledge the person in front of him and trying to look for a way out in the meantime. The fox faced boy had his sight set on Hangyul’s arm, where his scratch was. “I don’t know what you were planning by playing the hero but you have to be more careful. Stop being so reckless.”

After being met with no response, Seungyoun frowned. “Are you gonna keep ignoring me? We’re not children anymore, Hangyul.”

You were the one that acted like a child first. 

Hangyul was not sure of the relationship that he had with Seungyoun anymore. He liked Seungyoun, a lot but he wasn’t sure of what the other guy wanted from him. Sometimes it seemed like Seungyoun felt the same way but other times it felt like the older was just trying to pass time by being with him. It’s not like Hangyul cared about labels but he didn’t like being in the limbo that Seungyoun had put them both in.

One second they would be kissing and the other Seungyoun would pull away and leave. Was he being toyed with? He hadn’t painted the other boy as that kind of person but he was tired already. He thought that if they stopped seeing each other and Hangyul just ignored the other’s presence, his feelings would just go away but unfortunately, it wasn’t as simple as that.

“Are you still mad because I banned you from going out?”

_ You’re unreliable. _

Hangyul was trying not to lash out at the other. Seungyoun would not make him crumble. Not anymore… 

“Am I that useless?” asked the shorter of the two in a whisper. His voice hadn’t been as loud as he had planned but he made up for it by staring intensely at Seungyoun’s eyes. He was determined to stop being treated as if he was dumb.

Seungyoun seemed lost after Hangyul’s question. “What does that even have to-”

“You said I’m unreliable. You don’t want me to accompany Wooseok out but you don’t want me ‘playing hero’ here. What exactly do you want from me?” 

Hangyul’s last questions held a quite evident double meaning. The other boy was surely not expecting that reaction from the shorter one and he looked at Hangyul with his eyes wide open.

The man with a scratch on his arm simply shook his head and continued. “If you’re gonna make me feel useless then I don’t want you to bother me anymore.” He pointed at the two of them. “I don’t even know what this is. What are we Seungyoun? Just two bros that make out whenever they are bored? You know I don’t want that…” It looked as if Seungyoun wanted to say something but Hangyul wouldn’t let him. He just wanted to rant and then leave and hopefully not to be bothered by the older anymore. “You are special to me. But I’m tired of hurting so let’s just forget all of this and go on with our lives.” 

He pushed past the older one and made a motion to leave but Seungyoun grabbed him by the arm and pushed him to the wall. Then, he put both his hands on the wall, on each side of the other’s head, effectively caging him.

“You don’t get to say everything that’s on your mind and run away.” He seemed angry but here was the catch: Hangyul was angry too.

“I can do whatever the fuck I want because you’re not my owner.” Hangyul was tired of arguing. “So just let me do my thing while you keep doing everything by yourself like the perfect co-leader you are.”

“I was worried about you,” said Seungyoun in a scream, effectively shutting the other boy up. Hangyul was looking at the older man with a confused expression. “You came back seriously injured that day… I just… I just couldn’t bear the thought of losing you.” Seungyoun looked down in shame. Hangyul was right, it was he who had been acting like a child all this time.

The boy stayed silent, waiting for the taller man to go on. “I… I have lost so many people already… I can’t risk losing you.” A timid hand traveled to Hangyul’s cheek. “I was forced to kill my four best friends after they became infected.” He swallowed the lump on his throat. Hangyul could see how difficult it was for Seungyoun to talk about this but he didn’t interrupt the other man. “And they became like that because I was an idiot and wanted to play the hero.”

The older man’s thumb caressed Hangyul’s cheek. “I can’t let you do that.” 

Hangyul repressed a sigh. He felt bad for making Seungyoun talk about this difficult topic but he was entitled to his feelings. This man right here was trying to protect him. And even though he had done an awful job at making it clear before, he could understand Seungyoun’s concerns. But that didn’t mean that he agreed to them one hundred percent.

In the same motion, Hangyul’s hand positioned itself on Seungyoun’s cheek while he looked deeply into his eyes. “I can’t promise everything’s going to be okay… But what I think is that you should stop carrying all the burden by yourself.” Seungyoun opened his eyes in realization. In order to prevent Hangyul from making the same mistake as him, HE was the one that had been unconsciously doing the same thing once again. “Let me help. Let’s do this together.”

Seungyoun nodded and kissed the boy in front of him. Oh, how he had missed the taste of those lips. They didn’t go too far because Hangyul broke the kiss too soon for Seungyoun’s liking.

“I just want to make it clear that I’m going to go out on missions again and you can’t stop me.” 

Seungyoun smiled in defeat. “I’m still not sure if I hate or love this part of you.”

_______

He felt like the biggest idiot.

He had fucked up big time and couldn’t make up for it. 

If only he could turn back time and shut his mouth… maybe things would be different. But it was too late for that now.

After the cafeteria incident, Minhee had gone to look for Yunseong but his search had not been successful.

Yunseong surely would not want to be found but Minhee was not going to give up that easily.

Jungmo was following right behind him, occasionally saying that he should stop this quest and just give Yunseong some time alone as he had requested. Everyone had agreed that what Yunseong needed right now were time and understanding but Minhee thought otherwise. 

He was scared that if Yunseong was left alone for a long time, he would do something stupid and irreparable.

Minhee didn’t care if the other boy hated him, he just wanted to be by his side and lend him a hand or a shoulder to cry on.

"You should just leave him be," said Jungmo with a sigh. Minhee simply ignored him. If he didn't want to be here then he could as well leave. However, Jungmo didn't give up easily and kept trailing behind Minhee.

"Why are you following me? If you don't care for Yunseong then leave me alone."

He felt a hard tug on his arm and was met face to face with a frowning Jungmo. "Don't ever say that. I care for everyone here and of course, I want to help Yunseong… But he's going through a hard time right now and it's not stable."

"That's exactly why we should stay right by his side! He needs me!" Answered Minhee with a scream.

Jungmo looked down in defeat. "What he needs… none of us can bring that back for him." 

He almost said it in a whisper but Minhee had heard him, and that only made his mood worse.

"I know…" the boy was shaking. He was trying to fight the tears from coming out. "And it's all my fault!" He couldn't stop now. He needed to get it out of his system.

Jungmo stared at the other boy in surprise. "That's not true, it was just an accident."

The raven-haired boy shook his head. "You don't understand… I… I convinced Yunseong to break up with Donghyun."

The other man's eyes flashed open. "Yunseong was going to leave Donghyun… for you?" Pain tinted his voice.

"No, no, no. They… He… He really loved Donghyun."

"Then what the hell did you tell him?" Jungmo seemed to be growing more irritated by the hour.

Minhee gulped. "I… I made him feel bad. They were being so lovey-dovey when we were all fighting to survive, when Jinwoo was fighting for his life, when there are a bunch of zombies outside. I told him they were being selfish and there was no time to be in a relationship… He… He told me he would ask Donghyun for some time."

He was met with an exasperated sigh as an answer. Jungmo ruffled his hair in frustration. "You weren't worried about that at all… You were just jealous." 

Minhee didn't answer and that was enough confirmation for Jungmo. He didn't want to fake it anymore. He had been selfish and needy and he was not proud of it. 

Jungmo didn't stop looking at him. "Even though what you did was dumb…" He got closer to Minhee and slowly caressed his arm in an attempt to calm him.

But the tall boy continued. "There's more…" Tears had begun to flow at this point. Jungmo arched his brows but decided to keep listening attentively. He didn’t want Minhee feeling bad with himself for things that had been out of his control.

“I… I ran into Donghyun… He… he was crying.” It was difficult for Minhee to speak through his sobs but Jungmo tried his best to understand what the other boy was saying. “Yunseong had asked him for some time… and he… he told me he… he wanted to be alone for a while… but… he didn’t know where to go and I… I…” Minhee covered his face with both hands. The sobs were uncontrollable at this point. Millions of thoughts flashed across Jungmo’s mind… No… It couldn’t be… Minhee couldn’t have possibly...

“Minhee… Did you…” He couldn’t say it. He couldn’t even imagine that the boy in front of him would do something like that. “Did you lure Donghyun into the room where the infected were?”


End file.
